Police should be given the power to pick young teenagers up off the street and take them home to their parents, Shadow Justice Minister Mark Pettingill said yesterday.

The lawyer said officers ought to be able to target vulnerable 13- to 16-year-olds — even those who don't necessarily appear to be causing trouble — as part of a radical approach to tackling Bermuda's violence problems.

He said that by introducing a 9 p.m. curfew and stopping youngsters sitting on walls it would help prevent them falling in with the wrong crowd and getting involved with gangs.

Mr. Pettingill said the move could be part of a new parental responsibility act which would see adults punished when their children misbehave.

He was speaking after the United Bermuda Party held a press conference to call for a crackdown on gang violence following the stabbing death of 18-year-old Kellon Hill.

"Parents should be aware as to where their at-risk teenagers are, particularly those under the age of 16," Mr. Pettingill told The Royal Gazette.

"We lose them at that age: 13 to 16. We need to have something more than just: 'Wouldn't it be a good idea if you know where your kids are?'

"If you go to Hamilton, often you will see gangs under 16 hanging at ridiculous hours, even at school times.

"We need to have some legislation. I think we should give the Police the authority to approach a 14-year-old, ask for his ID, and ask where his parents are — then find out where they live and take them home.

"We would be basically saying: 'You are too young, too vulnerable, to be on the streets.'

"If he's 14, sitting on a wall at 9 o'clock at night, on a school night, he might not be up to no good, but he's not up to any good either.

"Sitting on the wall, he's vulnerable. A 14-year-old doesn't have the right to do that."

Mr. Pettingill said that under a parental responsibility act, parents would appear in court if their child committed a crime as the family has "let down the community".

He said similar legislation had been successful in Las Vegas and Scandinavia and could work in Bermuda as long as it had the backing of the community.

His previous call for a curfew had previously been dismissed by Government as too draconian, said Mr. Pettingill.

But he pointed to Premier Ewart Brown's pledge this week to get tough on drug dealers with action the Premier said people may claim is too draconian.

Mr. Pettingill also attacked the shortage of Police officers on the streets, saying: "You have a Premier who has at least five Police officers assigned to him on a daily basis. You go out into the City of Hamilton and I can bet you can't find five Police officers."

During the press conference, UBP Leader Kim Swan, Shadow Public Safety Minister Michael Dunkley, party spokeswoman Gina Spence-Farmer and former candidate Albertha Waite all had suggestions for the way forward.

Mrs. Spence-Farmer said both political parties should tackle gang violence together, while Sen. Dunkley called for a number of measures including more Police officers on the beat and for Government to settle its contract dispute with Police.