Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, December 11, 1993 TAG: 9312110206
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
And they could run the risk of having their drivers' licenses revoked, too.
It could happen if the city's request for tougher penalties for violations of the curfew for juveniles is approved by the General Assembly during its upcoming session.
City officials say they need a curfew with "teeth" so it will be a deterrent.
They want state law changed so curfew violations are treated the same as traffic offenses - with fines and possible revocation of drivers' licenses.
Under current law, juveniles who violate the curfew are treated as status offenders who cannot be fined or lose their driver's licenses.
City Council will seek the tougher penalties as part of its legislative requests for the General Assembly session beginning next month.
The curfew applies to youngsters 16 and under. They must be off the streets and out of public places by 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. On Friday and Saturday nights, their curfew is midnight.
Council enacted a new curfew last year which was designed to be more realistic than the law which prohibited youngsters from being in public places after 10 p.m. unless accompanied by a parent or other adult.
The city has established a procedure whereby parents can be fined and jailed if they allow their children to break the curfew more than twice a year.
If youngsters are cited two times for curfew violations within a year, authorities warn their parents that criminal charges may be placed against them if a third violation occurs.
If parents are found guilty of allowing their children to violate the curfew, they can be fined $2,500 and/or sentenced to 12 months in jail.
But there is no provision for the parents or youngsters to be either fined or lose their drivers' license for the first two violations.
City Attorney Wilburn Dibling said Friday tougher penalties are needed, particularly for the first two violations, to provide an effective deterrent.
City officials believe the threat of losing a driver's license could be a strong deterrent.
Officials have not decided on the amount of the fine or how long driver's licenses would be revoked, Dibling said.
"We haven't fine-tuned the legislation that much. That is something we would decide during the legislative process," he said.
Under current procedures, juveniles are cited for curfew violations and copies of the citations are sent to parents, schools and juvenile court authorities.
Youngsters are required to sign each citation. If police take the juveniles to their homes, copies are hand-delivered to their parents.
If police officers cannot locate a parent, they consult with juvenile court authorities, and may take the youngsters to Trust's overnight shelter until a parent or relative can pick them up. Trust is a 24-hour crisis center which offers counseling and shelter to people in need.
by CNB