I agree and disagree Mallardisme. The best we can do is be on the lookout, but even then it won't stop all crime. As long as there is cheap rent in Maricopa, this city will have a welcome mat to people like this from all over. And it isn't just a Maricopa problem. It is a statewide issue at this point. There was little that we could have done to prevent this. Just be happy that this wasn't a random act, and keep your eyes peeled. Go talk to your neighbors.

Cheap rent isn't the only problem, but it part of the problem.  When you can rent an 1800 square foot brand new home for $750 a month and cram people in as opposed to renting a 2 bedroom apartment for $900 in town, you basically welcome the types of people. You do get good, honest, people as well, but it is reality. Anyone who has ever lived in an apartment knows auto theft and crime. The difference is that these things are infiltrating neighborhoods all over.

If you don't think that parents are at fault, you are foolish. However, this debate will rage on forever.

Ultimately, the reason children go astray is because the external influences and pressure on that child are stronger than the influences from the parents. So it's not parenting that causes issues like this but lack of parenting. Parents that are stronger influences on their kids than the media and peer pressure have a much higher probability of raising good kids.

With that being said, the crime that occurred last night was a heinous crime with no thought of repurcussions. According to the officer, the kid was literally chopped up by a machete. He had very deep lacerations on his arm, head and back of the neck. The officer did not believe he was gonna make it.

Renters will NEVER have as much pride in their surroundings as homeowners do. Therefore, any time you have areas with such cheap rent on such large homes, you will always get an influx of people that tend to be lower income families and along with lower income, you tend to have lower standards. Renters will almost always bring down the standard of social living within an area like Maricopa Meadows. You can tell the homes that have owners vs. renters, especially in my neighborhood. The renters homes are usually full of weeds, full of cars in the street and the center of attention, noise and trouble.

I Second that motion.

I can somewhat agree with Stephen, however there are plenty of "Little Rich Kids" that get in trouble.  And if the lower income renters ave weeds and cars all over the street, then your HOA is not doing what you pay them to do.  There is no excuse for a rental property to "look" any different than an owner occupied property.

And AzSandSlinger!!!   RIGHT ON NEIGHBOR!!!!!  SO SO TRUE!!!!

Nail on the head. And that is exactly my point.

     I think we owe it to our kids and our community to get more involved in our children's lives and in the community itself. We need to be questioning and checking our kids whereabouts and the friends they hang out with. We need to go introduce ourselves to our new neighbors moving in down the street and making it a welcoming environment.

My daughter hated the fact that even when she was 17 yrs old and her plans for the evening sent sirens off in my brain, I would insist on talking  to her friends parents, just to clarify the nights event lol. This is not an invasion of privacy as I have heard from many. This to me is investing my time into my young adult child so she knows that she is being held accountable by her parents.

 I think we also need to keep in mind that no matter how hard we try as parents, that teenagers brains are still developing, their hormones are raging and with that concoction they will go make stupid mistakes that sometimes can be detrimental to their well being. 

That in no way excuses they kids of committing such a violent crime but I'm definitely not shocked to hear of this type of behavior happening here in Maricopa. To try to figure out who's fault it is at this point is trivial. I think it's up to us to start making more of an effort of having a stronger adult presence with our kids and in our neighborhood.

Thanks everyone for letting me rant It's so frustrating and scary to hear about terrible crimes happening so close to home as I'm sure poor Stephan can attest to.