Hamlet Police announce initiative aimed at curbing juvenile crime

HAMLET – The Hamlet Police Department (HPD) announced an initiative Thursday to help curtail crime numbers among juveniles.

“We are seeing an uptick in crimes committed by juveniles,” said Hamlet Police Chief Tommy McMasters. “It is my position that we need to start as early as possible to curtail the minds of our youth.”

HPD will partner with Carla’s Country Day Care, Dana’s Treasure Chest, Fayetteville Street Head Start Sandy’s Creative Daycare and South Hamlet Head Start to help ensure the success of the youth in Hamlet, a Facebook post said.

The post said HPD has drafted and disseminated “pledges for success” for the children and their parents.

“This agency vows to do their best to be an integral part of these young lives and teach them at an early age that a partnership between community and law enforcement makes any city a better place,” HPD said on the post.

HPD hopes to dispel the negative notions of law enforcement early and erase the lines of separation between the community and law enforcement.

“Our goal is to assist the daycares and preschools in molding these young minds early, showing them that they can succeed in life and that they have the support of their teachers, parents, city officials and law enforcement,” McMasters said. “Before they make a wrong decision, we hope they will learn through this initiative that they have other options.”