VILLAS – Lower Township is planning to enforce a juvenile curfew that it has had on its books since 1994 as one means of handling disorderly juveniles in the municipality.
At the Feb. 6 Lower Township Council meeting, Mayor Frank Sippel said Lower Township has a juvenile curfew in the municipal code that can be enforced without violating the attorney general’s December 2020 directive, which sought to reduce the number of juveniles entering the court and correctional system.
Mayors of New Jersey towns up and down the coast complained that Attorney General Directive No. 2020-12 tied the hands of the police when dealing with juveniles committing disorderly persons offenses. However, after consulting with Lower Township Police Chief Kevin Lewis, the municipal solicitor, and others, they feel certain the municipality can enforce the curfew ordinance, as outlined in the municipal code.
Sippel said there was some confusion due to a 1999 court case over a West New York (New Jersey) curfew, where the curfew was determined to be unconstitutional. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) website reported that Chancery Division Judge Martin L. Greenberg permanently blocked West New York from enforcing its curfew, created in 1993, saying that it was “an impermissible restriction on the constitutional rights of minors.”
In 2001, an Appellate Court upheld the Chancery Division ruling but said the ruling did not invalidate juvenile curfews in general. The West New York ordinance was simply too broad and, according to the court, was “an impermissible restriction on the constitutional rights of minors.”
In the case of West New York, one female juvenile was charged with curfew violations five times between 1995 and 1998, including when returning from a grandmother’s house located two blocks away; sitting on a neighbor’s stoop across the street from her house; returning home from a friend’s house with an adult; returning home from work while still in her McDonald’s uniform; and returning home from a movie.
In each case, the mother had given permission to engage in all these activities, the Appellate Division decision said.
The Legislature’s intention in creating legislation that allowed juvenile curfews was to require parents to control their children, the court said.
Lower Township’s curfew ordinance states, “It is unlawful for juveniles to be on any public street or public place within the township 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. during the dates of Sept. 15 and May 15 and between midnight to 6 a.m. May 15 to Sept. 15.”
The ordinance allows exceptions to the juvenile curfew, including:
- When the juvenile is accompanied by his or her parent or guardian.
- When the juvenile is engaged in or traveling to or from a business or occupation, which the laws of the State of New Jersey authorize a juvenile to perform.
- When the juvenile is engaged in an errand or errands involving a medical emergency or emergencies.
- When the juvenile is in attendance at an extracurricular school activity, an activity sponsored by a religious or community-based organization, or other cultural, educational, or social event sponsored by religious or community-based organizations.
The discussion of the juvenile curfew was renewed after complaints about juvenile behavior in the municipality.
In one case, juveniles in the area of Sheriff Taylor Boulevard allegedly initiated a confrontation with adults, and a 76-year-old man was struck. An adult woman reported being struck by a juvenile in the area of Mulligan Field.
The female juvenile, who was accused of striking the man on Sheriff Taylor Boulevard, was the subject of a stationhouse adjustment. The stationhouse adjustment is an agreement settled upon through law enforcement, the juvenile, and the parents as a diversionary program to keep juveniles out of the criminal justice system, while still addressing the problem.
Lewis said knowing there is a legal juvenile curfew in effect puts one more tool back in the toolbox for law enforcement.
The Lower Township curfew ordinance states it is the responsibility of parents/guardians to make sure juveniles in their care follow the curfew. It is unlawful for any parent or guardian to allow an unaccompanied juvenile to be on any public street or in any public place between the hours mandated unless the circumstance meets the above exceptions.
A first violation of this ordinance is a curbside warning to the juvenile alone. Subsequent violations within a year will lead to a written warning against both the juvenile and the parents/guardians. A third violation within a year will lead to an ordinance violation.
Any person convicted of this violation shall be subject to the following: Up to 180 days of community service or a fine of not more than $1,000 or both. If the juvenile and the juvenile’s parents/guardians are both convicted of this violation, they will perform community service together.
Thoughts? Questions? Contact the author, Christopher South, at csouth@cmcherald.com or 609-886-8600, ext. 128.
