Mandatory Curfews: Good idea or bad idea

[ChibiHorsewoman]

[color=darkviolet]I hate to say it but there has been a rise in violence in my city. Most notably shootings involving young teenagers. Recently a fourteen year old boy was gunned down. He was one of three victims of gun violence this weekend and all three victims over the weekend were young men in their teens.

Usually this opening would be for a thread on gun control, but I want to try something different. You see in an effort to try and curb such violence in my city the cheif of police is trying to convince the mayor to enforce a curfew on residents under eighteen. This idea was suggested earlier in the summer, but the Mayor was against it. I'm hoping that now he'll reconsider his earlier discission and enstate the curfew.

If I'm understanding this idea correctly the curfew would mean children under 18 would have to be inside by 10PM. I can't find anything on it for Rochester right now, but if anyone's newspaper has an online article about something of a simular nature it that'd be of great help.

My question though is do you think this imposedd curfew is a good idea or not?

I think it is because a curfew will make it so less people are out late.

I'll elaborate more tomorrow, I have to get to bed.[/color]

[Horendithas]

I personally think that a curfew for minors is an excellent idea. Many of the cities here in Utah already have one. For example here?s the info on the curfew in the city of Provo [B][URL=http://www.provo.org/index.php?module=ibcms&func=print&fxn=ppd.Curfew_main][COLOR=Indigo]Curfew Law[/COLOR][/URL][/B]. I don?t know if it is effective in preventing crime or not though.

My experience with minors who stay out late has been that a lot of times they are just getting into trouble. Or even though they are just having fun a lot of times they don?t think about the time and are really quite noisy. And as the info about the curfew states a lot of the crimes that are problems here in Utah happen during the early morning hours. Though I also don?t know if that is true either. If I were a parent I would not want my kids running around during the middle of the night.

It may be unfair, but how many other laws have been implemented because of people causing trouble. As a result everyone else has to follow the laws because of a small percent of people who refuse to do so. Kind of annoying but if people didn?t break the law there wouldn?t be a need to consider having a curfew.

[Kei]

[color=darkblue]The problem is that there isn't any way that it can be fully implemented. Cops can't patrol every section of town every minute of every evening. Many teens will find areas where they won't be able to be spotted. Even if there are those that are caught and put into juvenile detention, that rarely stops them from doing the same thing over again. Call me pessimistic, but it seems like a big waste of time and taxpayer money to implement something like that. *shrugs*[/color]

[SunfallE]

I also think a curfew is a good idea. And like [COLOR=Indigo]indifference [/COLOR] stated, there already is one here in Provo Utah. My dad lives in that city and like it says in the link [COLOR=Indigo]indifference[/COLOR] provided about crimes happening in the morning is true, well at least for my dad as every time someone has broken into one of my dad?s cars or attempted to break into his house or other such crime, it has always been in the middle of the night. He had a prowler trying to break into my sister?s car just two days ago!

If people didn?t break the law like what happened with the kids getting shot, then there wouldn?t be a need for such a law. Ironically it is the curfew law here in Provo that actually resulted in the kid next door being busted for selling drugs. People were showing up all night long to visit next door and I and some of the other people got tired of it as they were pretty noisy with their car stereos blasting enough to rattle windows. We knew about the law so we finally called the police. Turns out that all those people, and a lot of them were other teenagers, were picking up drugs from the kid. :animesigh

Anyway, I agree with [COLOR=DarkOliveGreen]Lady Katana [/COLOR] in that there isn?t a way to fully implement such a law, but there isn?t really a good way to fully implement laws against stealing cars or other such things either. It?s the same problem; cops have to many things to look for and can?t possibly be everywhere at once.

The advantage to having such a law is that if necessary the cops can legally pick up the minors and get them off the streets. The only thing I disagree with is that there should be some leeway in the law. Like if some teenagers went to a movie and their car broke down on the way home. I don?t think they should be punished when they didn?t deliberately break the curfew law.

[Lindus]

We have an 11 o'clock curfew for those under 17, and I think that it works out pretty well. Kids for the most part abide by it, unless there's some rare thing going on at night, in which case the cops will look the other way. Ditto for Halloween.

Of course, I don't live in a [I]city[/I]. So I'm not really sure how helpful a curfew would be. Like others have mentioned, being able to find the teens would be difficult. I'm sure at first, it would seem successful, but kids'll eventually learn how to avoid getting caught.

I don't really think it could hurt to make a curfew, although I'm unsure as to how useful it will be.

[Veritas]

[size=1][color=darkred]I personally dislike the law of curfew. I also live in Utah(Orem/Provo area) like indifference and SunfallE and if your under 16 your curfew is 11pm no matter what. If you are between 16 and 17 its 11pm except for friday and saturday nights then it is 1pm. I have gotten one curfew ticket, I was charged another time but I was able to get it dismissed. I just think that it is I think over-exaggerated here (goes along with some of my views and opinions for being here.)[/color][/size]

[size=1][color=darkred]I fully understand that most crimes do happen at night, but still at least in Utah we dont have that many major crimes such as shootings. I am a night owl so to say. I love the night, and I prefer it over the day. I personally just think it is wrong to punish someone when all they are guilty of is being out late. If they are doing something wrong thats a different story, it just seems like to me that they are saying well we don't really have anything on you but we are going to give you a ticket anyways just for being out late.[/color][/size]

[size=1][color=darkred]Also it is a rather hard law to enforce, because how do you demonstrate reasonable cause if an officer things someone underage out late. He cant prove how old the person is unless he stops them to ask, and that could be accounted as harassment. Most of the time the curfew law isn't enforced until another law is broken. Like the incident SunfallE described technically the loud music could be accounted as disturbing the peace. The law just has alot of holes.[/color][/size]

[Drifting soul]

Well my first reaction, as a 16 year old, was that it was a bad idea. Me and my friends sometimes stay out late having harmless fun and not doing any harm to others, just like lots of teenagers.
But now I realise that although it is unfair to some, it would greatly decrease the amount of crime. So I guess it really is for the best. I'd be willing to stay in watching a movie or something knowing that the streets were safe from vandels and the like.

[Guest soul surviver]

[COLOR=DarkRed]Im torn on the curfew idea. I think it's a good idea to have a curfew in place but the cops should look the over way when teens are seen out after curfew unless they are doing something wrong.
I know it sounds like i'm a hypocirte as i'm saying one thing and then another but I think its ok to be out late as long as your not doing anything wrong( and noise pollution counts as something wrong). With a curfew like this in place if your desturbing the commuinty or breaking the law and you get caught the cops can legaly pick you up but if your not bracking the law or desterbing the commuinty you don't have to restrict your eving entertaiment opptions because of overs.[/COLOR]

[Lafleur]

If people want to get out to commit crimes, [I]they will get out too comit crimes[/I]. Putting a curfew won't change that, especially with the rebel-rebel losers. All that a curfew will do is ruin the fun of those who don't commit crimes - not to mention put more strain on the under-manned police force and sap more taxpayer dollars.

As has been mentioned, it is impossible to keep track of all teenagers in a city of any size. All the curfew will do is drive more people underground - and that is definatly a bad thing. Turning on all the cities lights to max brightness in a sort of perpetual daylight would be more effective, and that's a completely rediculous idea!

P.S:

[QUOTE]. He was one of three victims of gun violence this weekend and all three victims over the weekend were young men in their teens.[/QUOTE]
[COLOR=DarkRed]
[I]Three?[/I] In one city, in one weekend? Whoa. There was maybe a grand-total of 3 people killed by guns in Montreal last year. [/COLOR]

[ChibiHorsewoman]

[QUOTE=Ilium]
[COLOR=DarkRed]
[I]Three?[/I] In one city, in one weekend? Whoa. There was maybe a grand-total of 3 people killed by guns in Montreal last year. [/COLOR][/QUOTE]

[color=darkviolet]Note: The 14 year old was a stabbing death- sorry for the confusion.

Yes, three in one weekend. Rochester NY has one of the highest homicide records per capita for any city in NY. There is usually an average of forty homicides per year in the city. However we've already reached that with just three months left in the year.

If you add those three weekend homicides to the other shootings over the past week, there were five this past week.. Including the shooting of a pregnant sixteen year old girl who was just sitting in her home when it was fired upon. Unfortunately NY doesn't have a law protecting unborn vitcims of violence and the man and the woman who urged him (what a *bleep* :mad: ) to do the shooting aren't being charged for the murder of the girl either. I think they may be being charged with criminal negligence.[/color]

[AnimeFront]

Curfew is super flaming. I hate it. I was going to the movies and the movie let out at 11:05, and they would'nt let me go in. That is the most ******** retarded thing ever. A kid can get any trouble any time after they can wake up. Last year one of my friends made a fake bomb and hid it in a trash can in school to get out of a test, it was genius, and he did/nt get cauf=ght. A kid can get into trouble anytime after they wake up.

[Shadow Blade]

[size=4][color=slategray][font=chiller]Curfews, curfews, teens hate it - adults love it

Where I live at the mayor has been stressing this issue for the last two years. The old guy had it set up and had everything working, however the curfew for the teens wasn't really working out. The curfew was set at 10 o' clock, by 11 o' clock teens had to be home, if not they were put in juvinile hall for a week or did community service for a week ( It really depended whether they had a good excuse or not). The only huge problem with this grand idea was that teens still found ways to stay out past curfew. Law Enforcement didn't have the time to go and enforce it. The plan was a total waste. So what Lady Katana said would happen eventually did happen. And I agree with her. The curfew did seem like a good idea, however the sneaky teenagers found a way out of it.

On the other hand, I have some good news!

[color=black]I just saved 15% on car insurance by switching to Geico![/color]

Just Kidding. The good news was that the curfew thing did work , but only for a little while.[/font][/color][/size]

[Lindus]

[quote name='AnimeFront']Curfew is super flaming. I hate it. I was going to the movies and the movie let out at 11:05, and they would'nt let me go in. That is the most ******** retarded thing ever.[/quote]

Well, I don't think all places with curfews are that strict. I often go to movies that let out after 11 or 12 (our curfew's 11) and you don't get in trouble. There's even a cop that waits outside the theatre (probably to prevent teens from going to a movie that *starts* after 11).

I also think curfews might help to deter the more timid types. Sure, there's plenty of people that will commit crimes regardless of time or restrictions, but there are also people that are a little more cautious who would be less likely to take part in bad acts if there were more restrictions. It probably doesn't make much of a difference but it [I]might [/I]help a [I]little[/I].

[Panda]

Way back in the day, back during my Junior year in High School my hometown put in place a curfew on everyone under the age of 18. It came about after much complaining from the community about the normal hang out for the high school kids which was the Burger King parking lot. People would meet up, show off cars and of course be loud teenagers. There were rumors of drug deals and that this "gang" was keeping regular BK customers from going to the restaurant.

The curfew was no one was allowed in that parking lot after 9pm unless they were with their parents and going to the restaurant. You couldn't be out of your house after 11pm unless you were on your way home from work. And on the way home means no stops between work and home. I worked at a movie theater and as mentioned before, many of the late showings get out after 11pm. This always gave me a bit of stress since I didn't want to go through the hassle of dealing with the police if I got "caught" going home from work. I am sure my overwhelming smell of popcorn and the cheese-tastic uniform would get me off the hook, but still, just the thought of dealing with it was annoying.

Even now as an adult I have mixed emotions. Many times I had study groups with friends late into the evening before finals and I think it would have been stupid to punish us for being honor students worring about our grades. There are far worse crimes happening and having the cops worry about 17 year olds out past 11pm seems a bit misplaced.

I can see how they would see this law as being good but the ones they put this law in place for really don't care and will continue to do their bad behaviors. To me it seems like the only ones it punished was the good teenagers.

[Aaryanna]

I decided to do a little bit of research before responding and this is what I found at Curfew.org [URL=http://www.curfew.org/history/]Curfew History[/URL]

[COLOR=DarkOrange][B]A Brief History of Curfews [/B]

curfew 'k&r-(")fyu n. Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French covrefeu, signal given to bank the hearth fire, curfew, from covrir to cover + feu fire, from Latin focus hearth. 14th century. 1: the sounding of a bell at evening (the Curfew tolls the knell of parting day -- Thomas Gray) 2a: a regulation enjoining the withdrawal of usually specified persons (as juveniles or military personnel) from the streets or the closing of business establishments or places of assembly at a stated hour b: a signal to announce the beginning of a curfew c: the hour at which a curfew becomes effective d: the period during which a curfew is in effect

Curfews have been around for hundreds of years. They're traditionally created by the upper class members of society to limit the movements of the lower class. The theory behind this is that crime originates from those lower classes, and this preemptive strike will limit the amount of crimes that they can commit. Essentially, it is assuming an entire group of people to be guilty. [/COLOR]

This is my number one reason why I think a curfew is wrong. It is basically assuming that if you are a teenager then that by being out at this hour you are up to no good. It?s basically a guilty until proven innocent stance and that?s not how our justice system is suppose to work, It?s supposed to be the other way around.

[COLOR=DarkOrange]Although the definition of the word may only go back to the 1300s, the concept of a curfew has been around far longer. For centuries, curfews were to be expected in cities that had been invaded. Of course, curfews for blacks were common throughout the south in the United States during slavery and afterwards, in some places through the 1960s.[/COLOR]

This is another reason why curfews aren?t a good thing. It is a form of discrimination to say that just cause you are black (which they don?t do anymore, unless you happen to be a minor) or a teenager that you need a curfew. People who break the law and do bad stuff aren?t going to obey a curfew. It?s against the law to steal but it doesn?t stop people from doing it.

[COLOR=DarkOrange]They became popular for youths in the early 1900s. The curfew bell could be heard throughout America in former part of the century, the sign to teenagers and children that it was time to head home. Curfews decreased in popularity over the years to come. Not many were actually repealed, they simply weren't enforced. But come the late 80s, they started being enforced again. Over the next few years, this trend increased. By 1995 curfews were being enacted at a maddening rate, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) had begun to get involved, suing on behalf of affected children.

President Bill Clinton, in May of 1996, announced that he was supporting a new teen curfew policy. His policy recommended weekday curfews at 9:00pm for teenagers, with punishments of fines and court summons for parents of offenders. Though this was widely seen as a half-hearted election-year tactic, it gained a great deal of attention from both the press and lawmaking bodies around the country. New curfews were added in greater numbers than ever.

Many of the police chiefs and city councilors that got these laws passed a few years back are no longer holding their positions. They simply passed these laws because it was the trend. So it leaves organisations like the ACLU & fed-up parents to fight to have these casually-passed laws repealed. It is, unfortunately, generally far easier to pass a law then to remove one. [/COLOR]

That's right! I forgot! If it's the current trend it must be okay! *being sarcastic here* :animesigh

[COLOR=DarkOrange]Some of these curfews have been tested in courts. Some failed the test, others were upheld. One case, Schleifer vs. Charlottesville, appealed their case all the way to the Supreme Court. On March 22nd, 1999, the Supreme Court denied their request. So curfews will remain a much-debated crime-reduction tactic until the issue of constitutionality is settled by the court system. Until then, a variety of tactics must be employed to make curfews impotent or remove them altogether from our lawbooks. [/COLOR]

Overall I?m not convinced that curfews really get rid of crime. I think it?s just a way for adults to somehow feel that since there is a law in place that it makes their city safer. If they really want to have a curfew law they need to rethink how it is worded as right now its making the assumption that you don?t have a good reason to be up late.

And isn?t it the job of parents to set a time when their kids need to be indoors? So long as the teenagers have their parent?s permission to be out late and they are obeying the law I see no reason why they need a curfew. Being in at night isn?t a guarantee that you won?t be shot or stabbed or be a victim of crime. Crimes happen during the day too.

I think the cops time would be better spent dealing with crime and real problems instead of how late someone is up, unless they are comitting a crime that is.

[Pumpkin]

[SIZE=1]Honestly, I think curfew laws are a load of crap. Seriously, there are adults out there shooting people everyday and they worry about keeping teenagers in after 11pm? That just sounds like an excuse to me for the police to get some bank. Just to let you know I'm an [b]adult[/b] and I don't agree with this law. Even my parent's wouldn't. When your a teenager, your suppose to go out party late at night or go to the movies, it's fine for those who don't but who's to blame someone for having fun? We're suppose to punish them all because sometimes their's violence? Obviously, I think thats a bit ridiculous and something that would have been said in the 50's. Let's get this straight...

[i]The parents are the one that should be watching their kids and setting the curfews if they are doing something bad....NOT the government![/i]

Especially since I don't live in a city, and there's not alot of teenager shootings where I live it would just be silly. Sometimes I really think America is progressing backwards instead of forwards because of laws like this. It's discrimitory and also I know for one if I ever had to experience something like this, it would definately be something I'd go against. Teenagers are going to want to go out even more late if you try and take it away from them, just think back to when you were one. Your realize it's pretty much just takening away what little freedom they can have. [/SIZE]

[eleanor]

[color=darkslateblue] Being a teenager...uh, no. Having a curfew of 11:00 would be horrible. Our football games last longer than that sometimes. And there is also the fact that the area I live in pretty much safe. Crimes rarely occur around here, so most teenagers and their parents feel safe. Yeah, and having an 11:00 curfew on days like Homecoming dance would be... bleh.

If I lived in a dangerous area, I think I'd be smart enough to know when to go in. It may sound selfish of me saying so, but curfews could be made for areas with more crime rates, but not in places like... surburban Georgia towns. [/color]

[manga_tango]

:sleep: I believe that a bedtime for young teens are a good idea, and I prove my point by me being a young teen and saying this, I-I think. I guess most would say it doesn't really matter, but it does, it really does. The fact that the opening spoke of gun downed teens, really has to make you think, if you were the parent, and you let your kid go to bed when they felt like it, didin't give them a curfew. Would that have happened? It also make you think what if you WERE the parents. How would you feel exactly. ( I know I think I'm weird too, but I will go on!) So back to what I was saying I thing a curfew and "designated" curfew are good things, safety matters, and so does thinking ahead. But I won't get started on that, It would take a while and I'm aware that this may not make any sense. :animeswea So Sayonara, Ai to Heiwa! (That's love and peace for you who don't know...Which most of you probably do but...yeah! Bye!) :animestun