Curfew Procedure Announced

NBC 4: The city of Columbus again plans to crack down on youth who stay out too late. The city announced its 2009 summer-curfew enforcement Thursday.

Children younger than 13 should be home one hour after sunset and until 4:30 a.m. Juveniles between 13 and 17 years old must be off the streets by midnight and until 4:30 a.m. If the teens aren’t in home by midnight, they will face charges. A curfew violation is a third-degree misdemeanor with a maximum fine of $500 and/or 60 days in jail.

Last summer, Columbus police picked up those after curfew and took them to a truancy classroom at the Downtown YMCA. CPD picked up 60 kids during the summer months of 2008; 27 were taken to the YMCA. The city planned to do things a little differently this summer.

“Last year’s pilot curfew program was a huge success, and we’re proud to work with Franklin County Children Services to ensure that we continue to keep our kids and neighborhoods safe,” said Mayor Michael B. Coleman. “Nothing good happens when kids are on the streets after midnight, and we need to do more to keep kids out of harm’s way and out of trouble.”

Coleman credited the media and said the direct result was less children on the streets after curfew. The 2009 summer initiative was set to be a 24/7 operation in partnership with children services. The 2008 summer initiative was enforced Thursdays through Saturdays.

If a child is picked up for curfew violation, CPD officers will issue them a summons to appear in court for a curfew violation. CPD officers are to take violating youth home and to a parent or other responsible adult or to FCCS intake center at 525 E. Mound St. if a parent is not at the home. There, caseworkers will contact the child’s parent or guardian to facilitate the return of the child as expediently as possible.

The city will pay nothing for the program; the county absorbs the cost. CPD officers will be crucial to its success, which brings the program’s future success back to the city budget. If voters weren’t to pass Issue 1, the failure’s outcome on the summer curfew initiative in 2010 couldn’t be assumed currently.