Who wants to deal with gangs and violence when there are so many speeders to pull over......

Wow, people here like to judge, don't they? I can't wait til your teenager screws up or makes a bad decision one day...are you gonna say it's all the parents' fault then? For your information, sometimes parents do all they can, and their kid still makes bad choices.

My parents have 3 kids, and let's just say that you would never know I am related to my brother and sister...I never snuck out, didn't drink until college, and graduated cum laude. My older brother and younger sister both started drinking or doing pot and sneaking out when they were 13. My parents tried yelling at them, grounding them, spanking them, eveyrthing, but they still got into a lot of trouble. My parents cared a lot; when either sibling did sneak out, my parents were up all night calling people, looking for them, etc. They yelled at them every night to do their homework. When my brother got caught with pot at 17, he had to go to an anti-drug class...on the lunch break in the elevator he and another kid got high. Wow, that really worked, lol.

I say all this to point out that you can be the best parent in the world for one kid, but your other kid may seem like they hate you. My parents treated all of us the same, yet I am the only "good kid" as they said. I think how a teen behaves is a product of both DNA and environment. Yes, some of these kids' parents do not care or are not aware of their behavior, but don't you dare judge every single parent of a misguided teen; chances are, their parents have tried everything and will never give up. THAT  is a truly great parent, not someone who thinks their teen is just perfect and loves to sit on a forum and judge other parents.

And if I were the Grammar and Spelling Police, you would be arrested.

I always find that people who play the "Grammar and Spelling Police" card dont have that strong of an "argument" ...They need to take lil stabs to feel like their college education and student loans arent a waste...IMO

I agree, but, darnit, People saw this beforehand. I don't think people need to be up at 3am. Look at some of the quotes from neighbors:

“I sat and watched from the window upstairs, being the nosey neighbor,” she said.
Another neighbor, Monica Cantu, said she wasn’t at all surprised to see police parked down the street, because they have been called to the residence numerous times.

“They always have problems with the boys who stay there,” she said. “I know the cops have been there.”

“I don’t get too much involved in what’s going on,”

This is the stuff that needs to be fixed. When one sees criminal activity, it must be reported and dealt with.

WE have to create our neighborhoods. WE have to keep crime from starting.

All of the signs have been there for a long time before this happened.

Of course it is very difficult with 36 hours of silence from our agencies.

Personally, I signed up for the grafitti removal service and met the same thing the news agencies did... No call back. So, I tend to shoot pictures, send them in and clean it up myself. I don't want to be in an area that allows that to happen.

As far as I know, I don't know your daughter, unless I am not aware of it. And I know that most parents will blame THEMSELVES for when their kid messes up. But that doesn't make it right for another person to sit and judge them when they have no idea what that parent has gone through, and how hard they have worked to raise them right. You were suggesting that the parents don't care or didn't try hard enough--I am saying from experience that that is not always true.

I do not have to be a parent to know that I would blame myself if my kid messed up--I do take responsiblity for my actions, as well as those under my care. However, like I said, that fact would give you no right to assume that I didn't care or try. How would you feel if your kid did something wrong, and you blamed yourself, and then came on a message board full of people saying "That kids' parents ought to be shot! Were they on the ground with needles in their arms while their ragamuffin kid ran rampant around town?" when really you were out looking for your kid who snuck out? I don't think it would really help matters, and I am sure you would be angry that they assumed you don't care. 

I don't even know if these kids' parents' actually do care; they could be drug dealers for all I know, but maybe I try to give them the benefit of the doubt, because nearly every parent I know does care about their kids' whereabouts.

"I always find that people who play the "Grammar and Spelling Police" card dont have that strong of an "argument" ...They need to take lil stabs to feel like their college education and student loans arent a waste...IMO"

Well, good thing that is just your opinion. Luckily, my honors degree speaks for itself, and I already posted my argument. However, I do know that I am a bit harsh on people as far as spelling goes; I am a writer, and a grammar nazi as well.

When I am in the HEAT of typing all grammer goes out the window....

And good for you going to college and getting a degree... ... USE it and make your parents proud!!!

I am not just referring to you; maybe I should clarify that. Your post was just conveniently on this page so I quoted it. But there are people who have jumped to conclusions and assumed the parents didn't care, acting like if you don't know where your kid is one night at 3 am you are a terrible parent.
Again, my brother snuck out and my parents didn't even know until hours later, because they were sleeping and didn't think their kid would sneak out the window. I am sure there are plenty of well-meaning but naive parents out there. I always thought it was funny how in high school, people would meet me and say my parents were great parents because they raised me right, yet when they met my brother (and didn't know we were related) they would say the opposite. That's when I realized that sometimes, it is out of the parents' hands, but they should never stop trying. I am sure the "bad kids" that do survive their teenage years will thank their parents for that care when they are older (like my brother did).

I am sure there are parents out there who do not care and who are horrible parents, but maybe I am not jaded enough when I say I don't think that's the majority. Like I said, it's entirely possible that these kids' parents ARE druggies or were too busy watching Ricki Lake reruns to give a darn. But if they aren't, then I do feel sorry for them, because it would really suck to have a kid that doesn't listen no matter what you do. Or maybe I just feel bad for my parents, lol.

You are ahead of the game...what works for one does not always work for all!! If more parents understood that then things could be a whole lot easier for them! It does seem in this case that there was a problem PRE machete...

I guess my daughters misfortune is I suffer from insomnia and roam the halls of our house at all hours of the night...no chance for her to sneak out!!!

Lol, my mom caught on years after my siblings started sneaking out. Even when I was in college and moved back home at 19, she waited til I got home to go to bed. I would be at a friend's house til 5 am sometimes and she would call me to ask where I was. I always told her, but she refused to go to bed til I opened the door. My friends always thought that was weird that she was still up, lol. If only she had done that when my brother was 13.