This is a phrase, which Selma Police Capt. Billy Morgan, head of the youth aid division, echoed several times when he was shown statistics from the 2000 Census, showing the amount of the juvenile crime in Dallas County.

According to the statistics, Dallas County was ranked the ninth highest in the state in juvenile violent crime, and also had the highest juvenile violent crime court referral rate in the state.

Morgan attributed the high amount of juvenile crime in Dallas County to a lack of parental supervision at home.

Morgan added that criminal statistics for juveniles have not only increased in Dallas County, but have also increased year after year nationwide.

Morgan attributed the trend to, among other things, increased mobility among teen-agers, an increasingly visible drug culture, more gang activity and a media, which, he said, promotes the wrong types of values.

To reduce juvenile crime, Morgan said parents need to take a more active role in their children’s lives.