Opinion editor's note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.

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Minneapolis had recorded 2,100 car thefts as of June last year. This year, an astounding 4,125 cars have been stolen in the city so far. Other metro-area jurisdictions report similar problems, with mostly juvenile thieves.

The youth auto theft problem has grown nationwide ever since a 2021 social media video went viral with instructions on how to hotwire Kias and Hyundais quickly.

Stealing cars has seriously threatened public safety — way beyond kids taking brief joyrides. Increasingly, stolen vehicles have been used to commit other crimes or involved in high-speed chases, dangerous racing and crashes. Too often, police find guns in cars, with drivers and passengers as young as 11 and 12. And authorities note that many are repeat offenders, with some being picked up, then released, multiple times.

Although more urgency would have been appropriate, public officials and law enforcement are taking note. The Hennepin County Attorney's Office, state officials and a group of metro-area law enforcement agencies are wisely working on improving cross-jurisdictional cooperation and other strategies.

At a Wednesday news conference, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty unveiled a new approach to handling youth car thefts that involves collaboration with law enforcement and social workers. And at a separate event, activist and attorney Nekima Levy-Armstrong and other community leaders called for more resources and programming to provide young people with constructive activities.

Moriarty said there will be a faster turnaround for charging decisions and that her office will ask judges to review detention decisions about holding young people charged with fleeing police. In addition, more intervention services, including a hotline for families to receive immediate social worker support, will be used to address underlying issues that contribute to criminal behavior. The idea is to intervene with at-risk youth and prevent crime before it occurs.

"We cannot simply wait to prosecute crime after police make an arrest, we have a responsibility to try and prevent crime before it occurs," Moriarty said in a statement. "For too long, law enforcement has known which kids were headed down the wrong path, but they didn't have enough tools to intervene. No more. We must be proactive if we're going to have a meaningful impact and improve community safety."

With a similar focus earlier this month, 50 chiefs of police, county sheriffs and county prosecutors from across the metro area held a juvenile crime summit after Gov. Tim Walz asked Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson and Department of Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell to convene the meeting and discuss the rise in violent juvenile crime.

Schnell told an editorial writer that summit participants expressed the need for more cross-jurisdictional communication and collaboration.

Too often, he said, officers from one city or county can't get timely information about a juvenile from another county to help make arrest or detention decisions. Some of the solutions, he said, may involve statutory changes on juvenile data.

Although some violent crime statistics are improving in Minneapolis, Police Chief Brian O'Hara told the Star Tribune Editorial Board this week that juvenile car theft is a pressing problem. Just last week, a 12-year-old boy allegedly driving a stolen Kia crashed in north Minneapolis. The boy and his five teenage passengers were hospitalized.

To make progress on youth crime, O'Hara agreed that better metro-area collaboration is essential, along with better information. Data restrictions sometimes prevent police officers from knowing whether a juvenile is on probation or has been picked up or arrested previously.

O'Hara also said families with children headed down the wrong path need more support. "There are families we know who are desperate for help but don't know where to turn," he said. "This new [Hennepin County] initiative and collaboration will help us get kids and families connected to supportive resources that are out there before it's too late."

The Hennepin County initiatives and metro-wide efforts are a good start in preventing juvenile crime and holding young offenders accountable when it occurs. The foundational work begins at home, though, where family structure and support are critical. Responsible parenting can prevent criminal activity, too, especially among preteens.

There's work to be done.