Last week, police said they arrested two kids, ages 12 and 13, for stealing a Kia and crashing it into a Glendale police squad car.
It's part of the reason why a group of 20 teens are now working to address the issues of kids committing crimes and act as a voice for their peers.
On Wednesday, the Milwaukee County Youth Commission met for the first time this year.
"I wanted to give young people a voice and have young voices amplified," said Mia Moore, the co-chair of the commission. "Young people don't get the opportunity to be at the forefront of decision-making or policy-making."
Moore's co-chair, Aaron Lee, weighed in as well.
"The lack of role models we're seeing, I believe that's going to make the biggest difference," Lee said. "When people see people doing the right thing and it actually paying off them and the people around them, I think that'll make the difference for our community."
County Executive David Crowley said he hopes the teens on the commission can help serve as role models for youth and steer kids in the right direction.
New numbers show Milwaukee Police Department arrested children hundreds of times last year on suspicion of stealing cars and committing armed robberies.
All of the numbers are for kids under the age of 16. In 2022, MPD said they arrested children 409 times for auto thefts and 76 times for armed robbery.
In 2021, it was 554 times for auto thefts and 54 times for armed robbery.
Already this year, MPD said it's arrested kids 44 times for those two crimes.
WISN 12 News has covered dozens of these crimes committed by kids recently.
On Sunday, five teens between the ages of 13 and 15 were arrested. Police said they chased the teens in a stolen car to 20th and North, where the stolen car crashed into another vehicle, killing a man inside.
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