By Charles Layton
Neptune Township has introduced a tough new proposal designed to keep minors under 18 years of age off the streets late at night. The proposal would also make it illegal for parents or guardians to allow a minor to “play hooky” from school.
The measure is likely to be voted into law at the Township Committee’s next meeting, which is scheduled for Thursday, October 6. It would apply to Ocean Grove.
The curfew hours would be 9:30 p.m. for minors 13 or younger and 11:00 p.m. for those from ages 14 to 17 inclusive. Those times deliberately match the curfew times of Asbury Park, to make it harder for minors to evade the law by crossing back and forth across the city line.
“I feel that we must be consistent with Asbury Park on this issue,” Mayor Kevin McMillan said. “During the evenings and nights I personally have driven around the township and have seen underage children out and about. This ordinance will be designed specifically for their protection.”
The law would make exceptions for children accompanied by a parent or an adult authorized by a parent, or when a minor is returning home from a job or from a night school, church or other such appointment, or is going to or returning from a doctor’s or dentist’s appointment.
It proposes penalties for parents who neglect their responsibilities by “knowingly” allowing a child to violate the curfew. For a second curfew violation by the child, a fine of not less than $80 would be levied against the parent or guardian. Subsequent offenses would require a Municipal Court appearance by the parent, with penalties assessed at the judge’s discretion.
A minor found guilty of two violations within a six-month period could be sentenced to perform community service for up to 90 days.
The “playing hooky” provision (my term for it, not theirs) would not only apply to the minor but to “any owner, operator or employee of an establishment” who knowingly allowed the child to remain on the premises during school hours “unless such child has been officially excused” by school authorities.
I personally take an active role in youth employment. There is nothing better than a solid mentoring program and most kids are eager to learn. The point is that when you have disaffected, disinterested parents, a curfew will not help. Do you think the delinquents won’t know how to get away from the police? Are we really that naive? What is the manpower that will be assigned to the enforcement? What is the crime rate among Neptune youths that would substantiate a curfew? What percentage is overflow from Asbury and why? Where are the problem, target areas? Neptune does not post their police blotter so there is no objective data to compare. If this curfew is being imposed out of fear of escalation or as a deterrent to crime then wouldn’t you want to know the answers to some of these questions prior to it’s enactment? A person is not defined under the Constitution as someone over the age of 18. It applies to everyone. The pursuit of life, liberty and happiness is sacred. Don’t be too hasty to give mine away.
A note regarding the “Call Me Crazy” comment: The proposed curfew law makes an exception when the minor is no more than 50 feet from his or her place of residence. There are other exceptions as well, such as when the minor is accompanied by a parent or guardian or is operating a motor vehicle with the permission of the parent or guardian. Also — and this is kind of interesting — the proposal would make an exception when the minor “is exercising First Amendment rights … such as the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech and the right of assembly.” But, again, this has to be with the parent’s expressed permission.
When I want the government to tell me that my 8 year old cannot play on my sidewalk in Ocean Grove after 9:30 pm with his friends who live behind us, on a Friday or Saturday night, I will ask them! Until then, the “flash mob” who lives in my neighborhood, who don’t have back yards and who do NOT roam the streets randomly b/c they are under parental supervision “on the block” should be left alone. You want to arrest the “delinquents?” Start by looking for the men who rob the bikes in OG in broad daylight or who commit armed robbery at Auto Zone. The parents who take no responsiblity will remain irresponsible and their children equally unmotivated and irresponsible. Their lack of responsibilty and motivation also speaks towards education. Perhaps resources should be put towards creating youth employment opportunities or “late night weekend recreation parties” where the youth could hang out, have fun and be creative. When I was young, they used to call it the P.A.L. (yes, police athletic league…) and it was open house on weekends to late hours…basketball, etc. Curfews will not stop crime or delinquency. Sorry…this is just another violation of my constitutional rights and creates a police state.
You The People fails to grasp that while many parents will allow a teen with a cold or small stomach virus to skip school for the purposes of health, only a small percentage of parents allow them to ditch to hang at McDonald’s all day. This proposed law would bring that behavior to the parent’s attention, and if they have a kid sneaking out at night, that, too. (Does anyone else remember poor Quiana Dees in Asbury Park who snuck out and was killed?)
If You The People feels this law is intrusive to minors’ and parents’ rights, then why don’t we allow minors to purchase and consume alcohol and operate motor vehicles at any age? Aren’t those laws creating a “nanny state” as well? Or are they just helping parents protect children, and sometimes protecting children when parents don’t?
As for flash mobs, one of these attacked a friend in Chicago at 6:30 in the evening on a Saturday night and broke his wrist and his leg in four places and injured his three friends. They were all minors, breaking no curfews, and all their parents thought their kids were elsewhere and are on the hook for my friends’ medical bills.
The reality is that there can be excessive laws to the point that you can’t leave your house between dusk and dawn, and crime will still happen. A curfew will not prevent a “flash mob” from kicking in anybody’s door. Should we have basic laws that protect life and property? Yes, and we do. Should we have excessive laws that create a nanny state and erode our freedoms? No.
Anonymous:
When a “flash mob” kicks your front door in to relieve you of your possessions and maybe your life, you might modify your view of the world as you would like it to be, to the reality of what it is.
Respectfully, Denis
Might I suggest to those that want a government that is involved in every aspect of your life to try living in a communist country for a while.
As far as “minors who are breaking into our cars and graffiti-ing our buildings” and “juvenile delinquents and other criminals” are concerned the last I checked these were negative elements of society that current law already does and should control. In cases of criminal activity penalties should be strong and parents should be held accountable. Although walking down the street in the middle of the night may not be the smartest thing to do at any age in many areas, it should not be illegal. A curfew will not prevent minors from committing crimes and not all crimes are committed by minors. If you see a crime being committed or something seems suspicious report it. All that being said, that part of the law, with the exceptions provided, does not bother me that much. The bad part of this law is the part that makes it “illegal for parents or guardians to allow a minor to ‘play hooky’ from school.” If a parent or guardian decides for some reason to allow their child to skip school for a day without school authorities’ permission that is their prerogative, after all it is the parent’s child not the state’s child. As long as it is not excessive and the child gets an education whether it be public, private, homeschooled… the government should not interfere in people’s lives especially to this extent. If we don’t stand up and say enough with the excessive laws we may wake up one day and find that it is illegal for us to take an 8pm stroll on the boardwalk, after all it’s for our own good and it might prevent another bike from being stolen.
If We The People continue to let the government take away our parental authority and encroach into every aspect of our daily lives we will slip further down what may at first seem to be an innocent hill but before we know it we will be at the bottom of a steep mountain stripped of the freedoms that our founders established and fought hard for. I have had enough of today’s excessive government.
the penalties should be stronger…parents held accountable
Well, when You The People manage to get the parents of the minors who are breaking into our cars and graffiti-ing our buildings to take responsibility for the lives they brought into the world, we won’t need this law, will we? When 16-year-olds aren’t being shot in the street at 3 in the morning, come talk to us again, You The People. I wasn’t aware a minor had the right to be out all hours of the day and night; wait, just checked the Constitution and they don’t. You speak only for yourself, not all people.
Dear Anonymous:
While your libertarian perspective deserves to be considered, this is planet Earth. AP and Neptune are overrun with juvenile delinquents and other criminals who clearly have not had the benefit of proper parenting. The Law must control these negative elements for the benefit of society. If you feel otherwise, might I suggest you spend a week of vacation in Somalia.
Yet another example of the government overstepping its bounds. The government and school authorities are not the parents of these kids and should NOT be allowed supreme rule over the parents. It is time that We The People stand up to the elitist politicians and school authorities, knock them off of their imagined thrones and remind them that this is America and not some monarchy. Remember that we have a government of the people, by the people, for the people, and if we want to preserve it We The People need to stand up to this kind of government encroachment upon our rights.
To call this “Tough” is laughable.
It’s hard to believe that these sorts of extremely minor penalties are sufficient to deter gang members and other criminal elements. How about a $250 fine and your parents have to pick you up at the Police station for the first offense and 48 hours in a youth detention facility for the second offense. That might get someone’s attention.