Moroccan and Casablanca Police Chiefs Meet with Riverside Law Enforcement

Submitted by the Riverside Police Department.
Photo: Police chiefs from Morocco visited with Riverside Police Chief Thomas Weitzel (4thfrom left), and Tim Carpenter of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Illinois (2nd from right) discuss ways afterschool programs keep youth safe.

On the heels of Gov. Rauner springing drastic cuts to afterschool programs on families, police chiefs from Morocco visited with local law enforcement and afterschool representatives to discuss ways afterschool programs keep youth safe.

“The evidence is clear: Afterschool programs help keep kids safe from violence during those very dangerous afterschool hours, which are known as prime time for juvenile crime,” said Tim Carpenter, State Director of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Illinois. “Far too many of our young people in Illinois have no safe place to go after school; which is tragically reflected when see juvenile crime rates double and sometimes triple when the school bell rings in communities all across Illinois.”

“My everyday experience bears this out,” said Riverside Police Chief Thomas Weitzel. “I’m far less likely to see a student who is in an afterschool program start down a dangerous path. And for those who were on the edge or started to get involved in crime or drugs, the kids who participated in afterschool were able to get back on track. These kids need a safe place with structured guidance from responsible adults, and afterschool is where they get it.”

On Friday, Gov. Rauner ordered an immediate suspension of funding for Teen REACH afterschool programs in Illinois, which serve 14,000 youth. Hundreds of youth and families have already lost services and have nowhere else to turn, jeopardizing youth’s safety and learning, and their parents’ ability to keep working.

“The comprehensive benefits are clear, but too many youth still don’t have access to quality, affordable afterschool programs,” said Kelley Talbot of the ACT Now Coalition. “Making sure more youth have programs available to them is a critical next step. Legislators and policymakers need to be increasing investments in programs, not eliminating them.”

The ACT Now Coalition is a statewide coalition working to ensure more youth have access to quality afterschool programs.

The Federation for Community Schools amplifies the voice and abilities of community schools in Illinois.

Chief Weitzel is one of 300 members of FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS ILLINOIS, the state office of a national, non-profit, bipartisan, anti-crime organization of more than 5,000 police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors, leaders of law enforcement organizations, and victims of crime. FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS members are dedicated to helping kids get the right start and stay on the right track.

Delegates (Police Chiefs):

Abdelhadi Chourafi
Police Commissioner, General Intelligence (RG), Foreign Aid Office, Prefecture of the Police, Casablanca

Said Ettouil
Police Commissioner, Chief of Special District of the Oujda-Angag Airport, Oujda

Mohamed Karzazi
Chief of Police, District of Mohamed V Airport, General Directorate for National Security, Casablanca

Hicham Laati
Judicial Police Officer, Criminal Investigation Department, Prefecture of the Police, Casablanca

Mohamed Ridallah
Police Commissioner of Judicial Police, Prefecture of the Police, Casablanca

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