Violent crime is becoming more common in Douglas County and more often by young people, District Attorney David McDade said Friday.

McDade was the featured speaker at the noon Kiwanis Club of Douglas County lunch at Logan’s Roadhouse Restaurant.

“Back in the 80’s, burglary was a big crime here,” McDade told the group. “We occasionally had a stick-up, but we didn’t have violent crime like we do now.”

He said as the county population has continued to grow, unfortunately, violent crime has grown with it.

“A lot of this violent crime is by young people,” he said. “We have a younger generation, a small segment of it, that has lost its moral compass.”

McDade said the county had two drive-by shootings last year and “the unfortunate stabbing” at the high school last week.

He said the stabbing incident was by young people who are associated with gangs. He said gang members here are from New York, Los Angeles and Virginia.

“Their families have relocated here, and we’re seeing the influence in our local schools,” he added.

McDade said the best thing parents can do is to be involved with their children.

“I’ve presided over hundreds of cases where the children (who’ve been arrested) can’t tell you where their parents are,” he said.

He listed two things that people can do to be safer:

• First, be aware of your environment. If you see a strange car or people causing concern, go back inside and call 911. He said many crimes happen when women are leaving their jobs late at night and going to their parked cars.

• Know where your children are, including what computer sites they’re visiting online. McDade said some criminals draw children into inappropriate conversation and convince them to meet someplace.

“The worst crime we’ve had involved meeting someone on Craig’s List,” McDade said. “The man wanted to meet a professional woman. She brought another man with her to his house. They tied him up, gagged him, tortured and mutilated him and set him on fire.”

McDade said the thing he enjoys most about his job is the opportunity to help people, especially victims of crime.

“My work is a calling for me,” he said, “not a job.”