Monday, February 25, 2008

Fort Worth City Council to review juvenile curfew ordinance

By Pegasus News wire

Sometimes teenagers need to have things broken down into simple terms to get through to their hormone-addled brains.

A review of the City of Fort Worth’s juvenile curfew ordinance is set for the Feb. 26 Pre-Council Meeting, and a public hearing is slated for that day’s Council Meeting. The review and hearing are necessary to reinstate an expired ordinance because it inadvertently sunsetted April 6, 2007.

Pre-Council and Council meetings will take place at City Hall. Pre-Council begins at 8:30 a.m., followed by Council at 10 a.m.

The city recently determined that the juvenile curfew ordinance expired because of the ordinance’s sunset provisions required by state law.

A second public hearing and City Council action is scheduled for the 7 p.m. Council Meeting on March 4. If approved by City Council on March 4, the ordinance will be reinstated immediately.

State law requires municipalities to renew their juvenile curfew ordinance every three years. The renewal process involves a review of the curfew’s benefits to the community as well as public hearings on whether to continue, abolish or modify the ordinance.

Because the juvenile ordinance expired on April 6, 2007, as a result of state sunset provisions, all citations written over the past 10 months are invalid. The city is verifying how many curfew citations were issued after April 6, 2007. All pending citations issued since that date will be dismissed, and refunds will be made for those already paid. City staff will be in contact with persons who received these citations.

“In effect since 1994, Fort Worth’s juvenile curfew is extremely effective in protecting our children and maintaining the safety and sanctity of our neighborhoods,” says Acting Police Chief Pat Kneblick. “Even though the ordinance is not in effect, police officers will continue to patrol our neighborhoods to deter juvenile crime and victimization.”

If reinstated, the juvenile curfew ordinance will prohibit anyone younger than 17 from being in a public place after 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and just after midnight, at 12:01 a.m., Friday and Saturday. The curfew will end at 6 a.m. seven days a week.

Owners or operators of an establishment will violate the ordinance if they permit juveniles to remain on their premises during curfew hours. The ordinance also will make it a violation for a parent or guardian to allow minors to disobey the ordinance by a lack of parental control. Violators could be fined up to $500.

Exceptions to the law will allow juveniles to be out during curfew hours if:

Posted by Alex B.

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