Teenagers

A dream had carried the boys so far from home, some 5,000 miles across the ocean to a cramped and dingy apartment in Philadelphia: a hope that ice hockey could change their lives. Ivan Pravilov could fulfill that dream, they were told. He could take them from the daily grind of post-communist Ukraine to the gleaming ice of the NHL. He'd done it before. He'd done if for Andrei Zyuzin, who went on to play for six NHL teams. He'd done it for Konstantin Kalmikov, a third-round draft pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1996.

Two teenagers have been charged with killing an 87-year-old Navy veteran during an attempted robbery last week because he "did not move fast enough," police said Monday. The pair, a 14-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl, who is the alleged shooter, are also suspects in as many as five other robberies in the Cedarbrook neighborhood, authorities said, including one that occurred about 40 minutes before George Greaves was killed outside his home. The Aug. 18 slaying has stunned the quiet neighborhood where Greaves had been a fixture for decades.

A recent Gallup poll tells us that 6 percent of American teenagers have tried to commit suicide, and 15 percent came close to trying. Among the reasons the children gave were problems at home, with peers and disillusionment about self. How can ordinary people venture to offer simple solutions? If solutions are not forthcoming, we do the natural thing - we assign the problem to experts, just as we delegate the evening meal to McDonald's and Pizza Hut. Sadly, the experts are not making progress.

It just took something out of him the morning Steven Carter, 17, awoke to find that somebody had stolen his clothes right off the line in his back yard in North Philadelphia. Not that he did not already have enough to worry about. Drugs in his neighborhood. A friend critically injured by a bullet. Students mugged on their way to school. A little sister who had to endure a hot summer with no neighborhood swimming pool. And now, a new worry: laundry security. "After growing up in that kind of neighborhood, it makes you callous about life," says Carter.

Picture a mall. What do you see? A food court. A fountain. Some fancy boutiques. A department store. Teenagers hanging around, seemingly with little to do. The Echelon Mall has something new to add to this tried and true formula, something aimed directly at the teenage market. And it won't cost the teenagers a dime. The mall is calling it Junction 14 - as in for teen. It's not a store or restaurant, but a place to socialize and go for answers to those ever- difficult teenage questions.

Debbie Carr slipped a hot dog into a warm bun and topped it with a dollop of sauerkraut. "This is a great job," said Carr, 20, who works at Speizemeister's Restaurant & Deli in the Deptford Mall, dishing up dogs and waiting tables. The hours are flexible, she said, the pay is good and the mall is air- conditioned. There are drawbacks, of course. Carr and her fellow waitresses have to wear Pennsylvania Dutch outfits - white blouses with short puffy sleeves, pinafores and lace-trimmed aprons.

A man and a woman were beaten by about eight teenagers in a parking garage in West Chester at 3 a.m. last Sunday, borough police said. Police gave this account: Michael Carey, 32, of the 900 block of Thistle Lane, East Goshen Township, and his passenger, Trisha Cassidy, 23, of the first block of South Church Street, West Chester, pulled alongside the youths' Honda in the 100 block of East Gay Street in an attempt to alert them that their...

Family guidance is becoming a video genre in its own right. While the field is still a long way from offering the cradle-to-grave advice for living that can be found in a well-stocked bookstore, video already has outgrown baby care and is now dwelling on the troubles that can beset youngsters. Child molestation and drug abuse were two popular topics last year for cassette producers, with titles such as Too Smart for Strangers; Strong Kids, Safe Kids, Drug Free Kids: A Parent's Guide, and It's OK to Say No to Drugs.

Teenagers under 18 without adult supervision are being turned away at Delaware's largest mall as of this weekend, as officials attempt to reclaim the center for shoppers, not slackers. "We will have a public-safety officer at each entrance, and they will be checking IDs," Steve Chambliss, manager of Christiana Mall, said shortly before the 5 p.m. launch of the policy yesterday. Anybody under 18 not accompanied by a supervising adult 21 or older will be turned away, he said.

Two Cambodian youths, one 11 and the other 19, were badly wounded yesterday morning by a group of Vietnamese teenagers in a shooting incident that police said was sparked by the older Cambodian's dating a Vietnamese girl. The gunfire rang out shortly before 5:35 a.m. in the 500 block of West Olney Avenue in the Olney section. Sam Nang Ross, 19, and Van Than Var, 11, who live at the same address on the block, were sitting on their front steps when six Vietnamese youths approached them and at least three opened fire, witnesses told police.

The Bandstand studio at 46th and Market Streets was old, dreary, and dark — that is, until Dick Clark appeared. Then the lights punched on like a bolt of sunshine, and the gym-like bleacher seats were rolled out with businesslike authority. A certain buzz circulated among the teenagers: Bandstand was about to begin. I went to the studio several times and, on one occasion, took part in one of Clark's famous spotlight dances with a girl I didn't even know. I was able to waltz past the guards at the entrance because I knew one of the regulars.

Teenager shot dead while waiting for bus * Wyoming Avenue near 11th Street A teenager was fatally shot while waiting for a bus in Logan Saturday night, according to police. Shortly before 11 p.m., the 18-year-old man - whose identity has not been released pending family notification - was shot once in the chest and once in the abdomen, police said. He was taken to Albert Einstein Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 11:04 p.m. Police have not released a motive or suspect.

DEAR ABBY: When I was 13, I would cut myself. I stopped around 15 after an attempted overdose that didn't work. I did it because my parents were stressed due to money problems and ignored me or yelled at me a lot. I was also bullied in school. Suddenly, in the last week, I have begun binge eating. I see no hope for my life or my future. I wake up wanting to go back to sleep or overdose. My wrists have throbbed at the thought of wanting to cut again, and last night I had a dream of jumping off a building.

With Pennsylvania and New Jersey both receiving failing grades again this year on their efforts to fight smoking and help smokers kick the habit, the latest report from the U.S. surgeon general should be a wake-up call. The report from Surgeon General Regina Benjamin details how states' failure to invest in antismoking efforts has meant that three million new teen and young-adult smokers have gotten hooked. If Joe Camel were real, no doubt he'd be high-fiving the tobacco-industry executives who seem to be winning the battle for the hearts (and lungs)

SANFORD, Fla. - The police chief and prosecutor who have been bitterly criticized for not arresting a neighborhood-watch volunteer in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager both left the case Thursday, with the chief saying that he is temporarily leaving his job to let passions cool. Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee's decision came less than a day after city commissioners gave him a "no confidence" vote, and after a couple of weeks of protests and uproar on social-media websites.

Two men and a 14-year-old boy were wounded in a drive-by shooting Tuesday afternoon in the Southwark section of South Philadelphia, police said. The three victims were standing on the corner at Fifth and Pierce Streets when someone in a vehicle opened fire about 3:25 p.m., police said. Police took the teen, who was shot once in the left leg, to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. Two 52-year-old men were both shot in the right ankle; medics took them to Jefferson. All were listed in stable condition.

Police are looking for a man who has been prowling Upper Darby Township in a minivan, approaching teenagers, exposing himself, and making indecent gestures. "Obviously, we have to get this guy off the streets as soon as possible," said Michael Chitwood, police superintendent. Chitwood said that on five occasions between Feb. 19 and Monday, someone described as a heavyset white male with dark hair made approaches to young people. In three instances, teenagers reported witnessing a man exposing himself and committing a lewd act. Anyone with information or who notices suspicious activities is asked to call Upper Darby Township detectives at 610-734-7677.

A 13-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by two teenagers Wednesday afternoon on her way home from school in the Castor Gardens section of Northeast Philadelphia, police said. The boys dragged her into an alley behind homes on Fanshawe Street near Loretto Avenue about 3:30 p.m. and sexually assaulted her, police said. The assault was interrupted by a homeowner who drove into the alley and saw the attack, police said. Investigators were knocking on doors in the neighborhood Wednesday evening in the hope of finding other witnesses.

A TEENAGER committed suicide in front of police after a brief foot chase through Kensington late Sunday, authorities said. The 17-year-old boy, whose name was not released, was at his house, on Bellmore Street near Frankford Avenue, when he got into an argument with his aunt about 9:25 p.m., police said. During the argument, the teen was handed a gun by a friend and he pointed the firearm at his aunt as if he was going to shoot her, police said. Instead, the teen fired one shot in the air and fled on foot with the gun, according to police.

Rina would have loved it - the attention of a Hollywood filmmaker, the interest from a Food Network personality, the gathering of so many friends and family. She won't be there. But everyone will be thinking of her. On March 1, the Make A Film Foundation, similar to the Make A Wish Foundation, will hold a benefit at Gratz College in Melrose Park to support the production of the movie that Rina left behind: The Magic Bracelet , the story of a mystical link between two friends.