Police in Atlantic City, New Jersey arrested three juvenile boys on an early morning last week They accused the three of trying to rob a deliveryman from a Domino's pizza restaurant earlier that day. According to local news reports the officers set up a sting operation to try to apprehend the suspects.

The manager of the Domino's pizza restaurant contacted police officers by phone at approximately 3 a.m., reporting that the store had just received a call asking for food to be delivered. The manager indicated that he believed that the call came from a person who attempted to rob the store's deliveryman earlier.

During that robbery attempt, according to Domino's, a suspect tried to grab the pizza without paying, and hit the deliveryman. The deliveryman made his escape, however, driving away before the robbery could be completed.

A police dragnet of the area was unable to locate any suspects in the robbery, but officers reacted to the later call by having a police detective pretend to be a Domino's deliveryman. Once at the delivery location, he placed the youth he encountered under arrest. Two other youths, accused of being accomplices in the attempted robbery, were also apprehended fleeing the scene.

Young people sometimes make mistakes, and can even be enticed into wrongful conduct by peer pressure, not realizing the gravity of the possible consequences of what they may view as a lark. A juvenile mistake, however, should not be the basis for harsh prosecutions which can permanently ruin a young person's chances for a productive life.

Source: Star Ledger, "Atlantic City police arrest 3 in pizza deliverymen robberies," Feb. 4, 2012