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On October 20th, 2006 Russell Ross, a 52-year-old homeless man, was beaten by three teens in a downtown back alley. He died four days later from blunt head trauma.

Two 16-year-olds and a 14-year-old were each charged with three counts of assault causing bodily harm.

Police, in consulation with the Crown, said the assault charges had the best chance for conviction.

There was speculation in the media the attack on Ross was inspired by a recent episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

The installment, Fannysmackin', featured a group of individuals who beat up vulnerable people as part of a social event. It aired ten days before Ross was attacked.

The attack also recalled a scene from Stanley Kubrick's 1971 film A Clockwork Orange, where four teens brutally assault a homeless man.

The rising spectre of teen violence brought reaction from Alberta's top law enforcement official, Solicitor General Harvey Cenaiko.

"Something is happening. Society has changed," Cenaiko said. "Kids are getting into gangs, drugs, violent crime. We're losing these kids. We have to bring them back."

Cenaiko told the Edmonton Sun he thought it might be time for Alberta to become the first Canadian province with a global curfew for minors.

Reaction from Edmonton's top police officer after the beating death of Ross left no terms uncertain.

"Enough is enough," Chief Mike Boyd told a news conference.

"We have decided to act together because were not going to tolerate anymore of this cowardly, thug-like behaviour."

Chief Boyd urged victims and witnesses to report teen violence.

"There are witnesses out there; we know that there are. We want anyone with information to come forward so that we can step up our activity.

University of Alberta Criminologist Bill Pitt thought it was going to take more than a phone call to curb youth crime.

"We want 15 and 16-year-old murderers to be accountable for their actions and that age should not be an excuse for homicide."

Pitt said change would only come by scrapping the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

"Well I certainly hope the Crown raises the ante here a little bit because I think the charge does not fit the crime whatsoever," Pitt said, referring to the assault causing bodily harm charges laid in connection with Ross' death.

Prior to the beating murder of Ross, 6 persons under the age of 18 were charged with murder in 2006, compared to 4 persons in all of 2005.

"This is the new norm; expect more of the same," Pitt predicted.

"We have a criminal justice arrangement – I don't call it a system, it's an arrangement – where a lot of law is dispensed but no justice is dispensed."

"So we end up with individuals with no fear whatsover."

"Recognising that violence is a viable means to an end, that it is okay to resolve our things violently, not just with fist fights or knives but with homicide, with killing."

"And that is turning into a thrill-kill phenomena in which we see individuals wanting to express themselves or get the buzz of what it feels like to physically kill somebody, to extinguish their life and to do it without any repercussions."

Had Alberta seen an increase in youth crime in recent years? According to Statistics Canada, the numbers said no.

The rate-per-100,000 of minors being charged with violent crimes in the province dropped by more than 10% in 2004 over 2003, and by 2.6% in 2005.

Despite a population growth, there were still 63 fewer teens charged with violent crimes in Alberta in 2005 than in 2004.

While the numbers don't track the intensity of the violence involved, politicians and law enforcement officials track the intensity of public pressure for law reform.

Cenaiko's desire to see a curfew would be costly to enforce, stretching already overburdened police forces. And it is unlikely to have any real effect on youth crime.

A recent study by the California-based Centre on Juvenile and Criminal Justice suggests where municipal curfews are widespread there hadn't been any real effect on youth crime rates.

"In those few instances in which a significant effect was found," the CJCJ reported, "it was more likely [that] greater curfew enforcement was associated with higher rates of juvenile crime."

So it remains to be seen whether Chief's Boyd's tough "Enough is enough" and community involved approach is the direction to take.

Update: Less than two days after Boyd announced his department's new crackdown, Edmontonians witnessed the worst instance of homicide in the city's history.

On October 29th, 2006 three men were murdered on the dance floor of the Red Light Lounge.

Thomas Tipo Orak, Jacey Sydney Pinnock and Dave Persaud died when gunfire erupted at the club near closing time.

Dwayne Anthony Nelson, 22, was charged with three counts of second-degree murder, two counts of aggravated assault and one count of assault causing bodily harm.

2006 ended with 36 murders on the books, the second-worst year in the city's history. Of the 24 people charged, 11 were under the age of 18.

deadmonton - why edmonton? - the rise of teen violence

edmonton, alberta – the murder capital of canada