Teenage carjackers slept on floor at CPD office, chief points to need for juvenile center

CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – One is a 15-year-old repeat offender with nine charges of vehicle theft. Another is a 14-year-old repeat runaway, with four incidents so far.

Both slept on the concrete floor of the interview room at the Clarksville Police Department this week, awaiting a hearing on carjacking charges after being chased down and caught by police.

The police chief says, “this must change immediately.”

“The safety of the citizens of Clarksville is our priority and requires the officers to be available to patrol the streets,” said Police Chief David Crockarell. “The added responsibility of taking care of a juvenile due to the lack of a ‘bed’ takes away from their necessary duties. The responsibility to feed these children and try to make them as comfortable as possible on our concrete floor while they wait for an appearance before the court goes beyond the scope of duties and responsibilities of the Clarksville Police Department.”

Carjacking incident

On Wednesday at about 3:37 p.m., Clarksville Police responded to PetSmart, 2784 Wilma Rudolph Blvd., after an 80-year-old man reported he was hit in the head with a gun and robbed of his 2013 Dodge Charger, according to police spokesman Scott Beaubien. Officers searched the area and relayed the information to other officers to look out for the car.

At about 4:26 p.m., while officers were still assisting the victim, a CPD officer saw the Charger on Jack Miller Boulevard and tried to stop it. The pursuit went into Kentucky and back into Tennessee. CPD was assisted by Oak Grove Police and the Tennessee Highway Patrol’s helicopter.

The pursuit eventually came to an end at 4:42 p.m. at Cranklen Circle and Audrea Lane, where the two male juveniles were taken into custody after a short foot chase, Beaubien said.

The juveniles

The 15-year-old has an extensive criminal history that started in December 2020. It includes nine charges of theft of a motor vehicle and one charge of unlawful carry/possession of a deadly weapon. He has been reported as an unruly or runaway juvenile eight times, Beaubien said.

The 14-year-old has been reported as a runaway four times and has been charged with simple possession.

NEWS ALERTS: To get free breaking news alerts on your phone, text the word NEWS to 77000.

Detectives have identified a third 15-year-old they believe was involved. They believe he dropped off the other two to commit the carjacking while driving a different stolen vehicle. He has a criminal history involving two charges of theft of a motor vehicle, runaway and domestic assault. He is pending further charges, Beaubien said.

“I want to thank the members of the Clarksville Police Department, the Oak Grove Police Department, and the Tennessee Highway Patrol, who risked their lives yesterday to apprehend two violent children who are not being monitored,” Crockarell said.

“The disturbing and most concerning part of this incident is that these children are not strangers to the juvenile justice system. It is necessary that the courts hold the parents and/or guardians accountable in addition to the habitual/repeat offender,” he said.

Juvenile center for Clarksville

Crockarell said the problem goes beyond those issues, and it extends to the need for a juvenile resource center in Clarksville.

Such a center has been proposed for a few years now, and has gained momentum during the August county elections and in the recent Montgomery County legislative agenda, with county officials pushing the state to approve and help with funding for a center that would both hold detained juveniles awaiting court dates and also provide programs to help juveniles at risk of criminal activity.

“The lack of a juvenile holding facility in Montgomery County is a prevalent issue. The Montgomery County sheriff is unable to house them locally, so we are forced to use other agencies’ juvenile facilities to house these offenders. All too often, juvenile court officers have difficulties finding space or ‘beds’ for juveniles that need to be detained and held in a confinement facility. Last night was no different, there were no available ‘beds,’ but due to the nature of the crime, the Clarksville Police Department was requested by the court to monitor these children in our office building while waiting to appear before a judge this morning. They ended up having to sleep on the floor of our interview room.

“This must change immediately,” Crockarell said. “The community needs to reach out to their elected official seeking their support for a juvenile detention facility that is local. The Clarksville Police Department and my professional employees cannot do it alone.”

Victim recovering

The victim is doing well, Beaubien said. Montgomery County EMS transported him to Tennova Healthcare-Clarksville shortly after the robbery, and he was treated and released the same day.

“Our thoughts and our prayers go out to the victim of such a violent act committed by juveniles without care or concern for others. We are here for you, and we will do what we can to bring you justice,” Crockarell said.

This is still an ongoing investigation, and anyone with information or additional video footage is asked to please contact Detective Billotte at 931-648-0656, ext. 5694.