WASHINGTON — Mayor Muriel Bowser wants parents to be held accountable if their child skips school. D.C.'s truancy and chronic absenteeism rates remain among the highest in the country, with close to half of all D.C. students missing more than 18 days of school.
The mayor's plan comes on the heels of last week's arrest of three girls accused of beating someone to death.
Two 13-year-olds and a 12-year-old are facing second-degree murder charges after police say they beat a 64-year-old disabled man to death. These girls had a long history of skipping school, with one girl not showing up to class even once so far this year, according to the Washington Post.
While not all kids who miss school are committing crimes, truancy is a serious problem D.C. can no longer ignore.
The disturbing crime was caught on camera, according to prosecutors. Court documents reveal 64-year-old Reggie Brown was chased into an alley off Georgia Avenue, Northwest and beaten to death. The homicide happened just after midnight on Oct. 17.
"The first comment I asked my staff was 'Why did they do that?'" Bowser said of the brutal beating. "That's a bigger question we have to ask our society, or communities, our families, our churches. How do we have 12- or 13-year-old girls who have that much disregard for life?"
While Bowser said truancy may not have led to the girls' alleged behavior, keeping kids in school is critical. She spoke about legislation she is working on to address truancy in D.C. schools.
"We want to make sure all of our system, from courts to Attorney General, are using every tool they have, not to punish parents per se — to make sure they have services they need. if they refuse those services, what are the consequences?" Bowser said.
While details about what those consequences may be aren't known right now, Bowser's bill would join several others before DC Council aimed at accountability and support for families whose young people are missing too much school.
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