The group “Fight Crime: Invest in Kids” is holding news conferences across the country, including Iowa, to call for more federal spending on after-school programs. Jeff Kirsh, the group’s vice president, spoke at a news conference this morning in Des Moines. Kirsh says the three-to-six p.m. time period is the “prime time” for teenage crime — when they’re most prone to commit crime or be the victims of crime.Kirsh says it’s also the time when teens engage in all kinds of risky behavior: sex, drugs, smoking, and alcohol consumption. He says three to four o’clock is also the prime time for teenage car crashes. Kirsh is urging Iowa Senator Charles Grassley to shepherd legislation that would increase spending on after-school programs. Kirsh’s group commissioned a nationwide study, and it found the greatest concern for working mothers was the safety of their kids in the after-school hours. “First Crime: Invest in Kids” has two-thousand members nationwide; 100 in Iowa. Most members are in law enforcement. Kirsh says law enforcement recognizes they’re doing their job with one hand tied behind their back if there aren’t early investments in pre-school and after-school programs, kids will become criminals and cops will “have their work cut out for them.”