Washington, D.C., Attorney General Brian Schwalb is again under scrutiny for his response to crime after arguing that the district cannot “prosecute or arrest our way” out of the area’s rising crime levels.

Schwalb responded to district residents who showed up at a panel discussion on carjacking and juvenile crime on Tuesday led by Ward 6 Councilman Charles Allen. U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew Graves was also in attendance.

Many community members demanded accountability from district leaders to address the violent crime epidemic after 2023 ended with a 39% increase in violent crime. Motor vehicle theft in the district increased 82%, rising for the sixth year in a row, totaling 959 reported incidents. Metropolitan Police Department data showed 173 carjacking arrests were made in 2023, with 62% of arrests involving juveniles.

Several residents questioned the panelists on Tuesday about why juveniles were not being held accountable for their crimes.

“We as a city and a community need to be much more focused on prevention and surrounding young people and their families with resources if we want to be safer in the long run,” Schwalb said. “We cannot prosecute and arrest our way out of it.”

Schwalb has previously come under fire for declining to prosecute several juvenile cases, leading to many of them becoming repeat offenders and escalating to more violent crimes. He has actively touted programs of restorative justice and rehabilitation over incarceration, a method preferred by liberal prosecutors and officials, and pushed back against tougher detention sentences.

In April of last year, Schwalb said district leaders must ask themselves about the root causes of youth crime and show juveniles mercy.

“We also are committed in the juvenile system to treat kids like kids and that we give kids what the law requires, which is a chance of rehabilitation and going on to live lives of success and independence,” Schwalb said in an interview with Fox 5 DC. “Kids are different than adults, and our job as the attorney general of the city is to keep the city safe but also make sure we stay true to our obligation to young people.”

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Several high-profile carjackings and shootings occurred within the last two days. Over an 11-hour stretch on Monday night, one suspect was involved in eight dangerous incidents, including the shooting of a former Trump administration official and several others, as well as multiple carjackings.

As of Wednesday, the MPD has reported 46 carjackings and nine homicides in 2024. There have been eight carjacking arrests, with 88% of arrests involving juveniles. All arrested juveniles are district residents.