A group of teens deny terrorizing two families inside a northside trailer park.

Ten youth, aged 12 to 17, were found hanging out on a recent evening in a park in the centre of Northwood Heritage Estates on 76th Street in Red Deer.

They’ve congregated quietly behind a fence. A few are sitting on BMX bikes. One girl has a protruding tummy.

None appear dangerous. Several smile, although sheepishly.

Among them is Mark, a 17-year-old who towers over all of his friends and is the most talkative. (The youths’ names have been changed to protect their identities.)

He disputes everything that Daniel and Linda Kroshewsky, and their next-door neighbour Kristy Murphy said in the Aug. 28 edition of the Advocate.

Both families say they are being forced to leave the neighbourhood because of harassment. They’ve had rocks thrown at their windows and/or been physically threatened. They don’t feel safe in their homes.

The Kroshewskys have called police at various hours of the night. Some of the kids, they say, are out at 2 or 3 a.m. They’ve seen them smoking weed, drinking and having sex.

Mark said they have done “nothing at all” to hurt anyone.

“I’m telling you the truth — nothing,” said Mark. “We don’t kill animals, we don’t rob little kids for their money and toys.”

His brother Sam is 13, one of the youngest of the group. He said he’s lived in the trailer park all of his life, so it’s all he knows.

Mark said they like to hang out by the fence where they are now. Sometimes they’re near the entrance into the park that includes a children’s playground.

“All we do is sit around and listen to music and smoke cigarettes,” Mark said.

Three admit later they smoke marijuana.

Mark said these adults, including Murphy, who has a two-year-old child, are blaming them simply because they are “teenagers.”

“It’s a trailer park,” he added. “Everybody has a bad name in a trailer park.”

Denise, 16, said she has a curfew, depending on what she is doing the next day. “Before 11 p.m., basically everybody leaves,” she said. “Do they expect us to be quiet?”

They give an impression that they lead a typical teenage life. All say they go to school.

“Some of us had summer jobs, but we didn’t like them so much, so we quit,” said Andrew, 16. “Now with school, we’ll hang around here a little less.”

Next to him is 17-year-old Kate, who is almost due with their baby. She says they aren’t going out.

“We’re on a break,” Andrew added.

Gail, 16, said she lives with her 27-year-old sister in a different neighbourhood. Their mother died last year.

All seem to think it’s normal to hang out daily in the park.

Mark said he doesn’t like being cooped up inside.

“It’s boring,” Denise added.

When asked what their family life is like, Mark replied, “I wouldn’t say good, I wouldn’t say bad.”

“I’m closer to my friends than my family,” added his brother Sam.

“You do have problems at home, but everybody does,” said Denise.

“I don’t have a family,” said a 15-year-old girl, adding she is in foster care.

No one reports being in serious trouble with the law. Andrew said he’s gotten a couple of tickets, while Mark received a fine for jaywalking.

“All the cops know my name,” Mark said. “I don’t like ’em. Well, I do, but they assume we’re bad people.”

There is intermittent swearing, but otherwise they aren’t rude.

Ethan, 16, said others may be to blame for the troubles that happen in the green space and beyond.

“We’re not the only group that comes here,” he said.

Andrew’s brother Brian said people should be concerned with traffic in the trailer park.

“There’s little boys and girls who hang out here and they’re on the street. Barely, anybody stops for the stop sign and they just fly around the corner.”

Linda Kroshewsky isn’t surprised the teens are saying they are innocent — and that they’re showing good behaviour. “We are telling the truth — honestly, don’t we have better things to do than to make up stories about a bunch of kids?”

Kroshewsky said she’s helped out at a youth centre in Edmonton, and her husband would have volunteered to teach the teens bass guitar.

“I like kids — I’d like nothing better than to help them,” she said.

Contact Laura Tester at ltester@reddeeradvocate.com