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Should Youth Curfew Law Violate A Juvenile's Constitutional Rights?

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Since the early 20th Century there has been great debate whether youth having a youth curfew law violates the constitution. According to legal-dictionary, a curfew is when local ordinances and state statutes may make it unlawful for minors below a certain age to be on public streets, unless they are accompanied by a parent or an adult or on lawful and necessary business on behalf of their parents or guardians. In recent years, a number of local juvenile curfew laws have been challenged on the grounds that the laws violate the First Amendment and other guarantees provided under U.S. and state constitutions. I believe that the law does not violate a juvenile’s constitutional rights and has many benefits when it comes to controlling and preventing …show more content…

Carl Pickhardt, believes the curfew law helps keep youth off of the streets especially when it is late at night. Risks can become greater as the hour gets later, with more people who are out being fatigued or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Also, he says, later hours may have more obstacles for your child, as they might face exposure to more decisions about conduct. ("Effects of Teen Curfews") In addition, the law protects youth from being victims of crime. Politician and writer from Atlanta, Georgia Jeff Dickinson proposed a curfew law to the legislators of Atlanta. This curfew law would establish restrictions on minors after a certain time of the day. In his proposal parents would be penalized if their child was a repeated offender. In November of 1990, Atlanta established a curfew law that would put everyone under the age of 16 to be in their homes by 8:00 p.m., if they were caught outside of their homes beyond that time, they would be arrested, and brought home to their parents. ("The Courts") Under the 1993 curfew law, police detained 204 repeated offenders, took 293 children home, and arrested 99 parents. Some police officers in Atlanta say that the curfew ordinance has helped curb, but not eliminate juvenile delinquency. Crimes still occur, but 25% of youth crimes have decreased, proving the ordinance is working. ("The

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I do believe that the youths committing crimes should be punished, but there is a reason for the existence of a juvenile corrections system. Using the prison system to enforce this law is an example of the dominant culture using tools that they have to maintain their dominant position. Additionally, this is an example of social location having a large impact on ones day to day life. My friend got caught selling marijuana on school grounds, and only received probation, he is a white male, upper middle class, etc. But this is an example of treating those who are socially located in the poor, or minority groups, much harsher than those located in a different social

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The cost of creating and maintain juvenile detention centers is insane. During the 1990s “the juvenile justice system saw a 43% increase in spending, mainly as a response to the expenditures that accompanied the increased confinement of juvenile offenders” (Gaudio, 2010). It has been proven that juvenile’s brains are not as developed as adults and the threat of detention does not affect them as much as it would in an adult so it would not be as affective at deterring crime. Being incarcerated also may make a juvenile more likely to reoffend once they are released.

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Why you shouldn't let your child be in the streets late at night. The main reason you shouldn't let your child stay late at night is because many things can happen at night as in your child being accused of stealing something to a maniac being in the streets that might harm your child. This is why your child should have a curfew to avoid activities such as these. The reason your child should have a curfew is because imagine if your child was outside late at night and got shot by a psycho in the streets.

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I disagree with the city council’s decision because I think teenagers have a right to be out late, they may need to get away from their house because of danger, and there could be an emergency. First, if teenagers want to go out on the streets late then they should have a right to so. It may be the only time they can go out just to hang with friends or they may just need some air. Teenagers are old enough to decide if they want to go out late or not, they don’t always need adults telling them what to do; and curfew is one thing they don’t need. Second, some teenagers have problems at home such as being neglected or family problems that lead to abuse.

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The state is the supreme guardian of all children within its jurisdiction, and state courts have the inherent power to intervene to protect the best interests of children... (The Gale Group) Simply, the basis of the Juvenile court is to protect children. Another founding principle of the court is the idea of rehabilitating delinquent juveniles and providing them with tools to become productive citizens, rather than punishing them (Bartollas and Schmalleger 179). Both these essential principles are demonstrated through actions and operation of the juvenile

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This concern is shared by federal, state, local government government officials, and the public. According to Siegel and Welsh (2011), an estimated 1.7 million youths, under 18 years of age, are arrested each year for committing crimes that rage from loitering to murder, and this number is expected to rise (p. 10). Additionally, more than 250,000 juveniles are arrested each year for committing a status offenses, and roughly 160,000 of these offenses are petitioned to the juvenile court (Siegel & Welsh, 2011, p. 22).

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