For the purpose of this division, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein. When not inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense include the future, words in the plural include the singular and words in the singular include the plural. The word “shall” is always mandatory and not merely directory.
Establishment.
Any privately owned place of business carried on for a profit or any place of amusement or entertainment to which the public is invited.
Juvenile.
Any person under the age of seventeen (17) years of age, or, in equivalent phrasing, any person of the age sixteen (16) years old or younger.
Operator.
Any individual, firm, association, partnership or corporation operating, managing, or conducting any establishment; and whenever used in any clause prescribing a penalty, the term as applied to associations or partnerships shall include the members or partners thereof and as applied to corporations shall include the officers thereof.
Parent.
Any natural parent of a juvenile, a legal guardian, or any adult person, eighteen (18) years or older, in whose care the juvenile has been placed by the natural parent or legal guardian.
Public place.
Any public street, highway, road, alley, park, playground, public building, parkway or vacant lot.
Remain.
To stay behind, to tarry and stay unnecessarily upon a public place, including congregating in groups totaling four (4) or more juveniles in which any minor included would not be using the public place for an ordinary or serious purpose such as passage or going home. To implement this definition with more precision and precaution, numerous exceptions will be provided hereinafter to indicate that this is not a mere prohibitory or presence type curfew ordinance. More exceptions become available to juveniles with increasing years and advancing maturity as appropriate in the interest of reasonable regulation.
Time of night.
The prevailing local standard time at the date in question, whether Central Standard Time or Central Daylight Savings Time, as observed by the public. The time maintained by the city police department shall be prima facie evidence of the time of day for continued implementation of this division.
Years of age.
The time from one birthday, such as the sixteenth, to the next, but not including the day of the next birthday. Thus, upon a person’s seventeenth birthday, he or she will cease to be a juvenile regulated by this division.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)
It shall be unlawful for any person sixteen (16) or less years of age to be or remain in or upon any public place or in or upon any establishment within the city between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 5:30 a.m. of the following day, official city time.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)
(a) 
In the following exceptional cases a juvenile in or upon any public place or in and upon an establishment shall not be deemed in violation of this division. This section is intended as a clear guide for juveniles, their parents, and law enforcement officials:
(1) 
When the juvenile is accompanied by his/her parent, legal guardian or authorized adult supervisor.
(2) 
When exercising First Amendment rights protected by the United States Constitution, such as the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech and the rights of assembly, it shall be deemed a bona fide exercise of such rights if the assembly, whether parade or demonstration, has been permitted by the city or consists of other bona fide religious, social or school activities involving the right to assemble.
(3) 
When engaged in performing an errand or other legitimate business at the direction of a parent, guardian or supervisory adult, including travel to and from such location by a direct route.
(4) 
When the juvenile is on the sidewalk at the place where such juvenile resides, or on the sidewalk of either next-door neighbor, when the neighbors do not object to such presence.
(5) 
When the juvenile is engaged in employment activities, such as, but not restricted to, newspaper delivery.
(b) 
All of the above-cited exceptions to this division include travel to and from such activity by a direct route, and this division is in no way to be construed as a limitation upon normal travel by a juvenile engaged in interstate or intrastate movement.
(c) 
Each of the foregoing exceptions is severable, and other possible exceptions may be added hereto in the future as warranted by experience and views illuminated by students, school personnel, citizens, neighborhood spokesmen, parents, officers and persons in authority concerned with minors as well as juvenile delinquency.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)
It shall be unlawful for a parent knowingly to permit, or by insufficient control allow, a juvenile in his or her care to be or remain in any public place or to be or remain in any establishment other than for excepted activities during the curfew hours established by this division. The term “knowingly” includes knowledge which a parent should reasonably be expected to have concerning the whereabouts of a juvenile in such parent’s custody. It shall be prima facie evidence of violation of this section if a responsible parent has no knowledge of a juvenile’s whereabouts during the hours of curfew established by this division. The purpose of this section is to require neglectful or careless parents to meet the community standard of parental responsibility.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)
It shall be unlawful for the owner or operator of a business establishment to allow a juvenile to remain upon such business premises during the hours of curfew established in this division beyond the time necessary to conduct an excepted activity. It shall be no defense to this section that the juvenile made a purchase, if the juvenile did not immediately make such purchase upon arrival and depart immediately thereafter. It shall be a defense to prosecution under this section that the owner or operator of such business establishment has promptly notified the city police department that juveniles present on the premises after hours have refused to depart.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)
(a) 
A law enforcement officer, upon finding or having his or her attention called to any juvenile in or on a public place, or in or on the premises of a business establishment, in a prima facie violation of this division, may take the juvenile into custody. Such juvenile may be transported to the city police department. Upon arrival at the police department, a parent, legal guardian or other responsible adult shall be immediately notified to pick up such juvenile. An officer taking a juvenile into custody shall also have discretion to release such juvenile to a parent, legal guardian or other responsible adult under circumstances deemed appropriate by the officer. An officer may also issue a warning notice to the juvenile in accordance with section 52.01 of the Texas Family Code and order such juvenile to go directly and promptly to his or her home. Delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision under sections 51.03 and 52.01 of the Texas Family Code shall be handled in accordance with applicable provisions of the Family Code.
(b) 
Upon picking up a juvenile in custody, the parent, legal guardian or other adult responsible for the supervision of the juvenile may be questioned about the circumstance of the juvenile’s activities. This is intended to permit ascertainment, under constitutional safeguards, of relevant facts, and to centralize responsibility for accurate, effective, fair, impartial and uniform environment and recording, thus making available experienced supervisory personnel, the best of facilities, and, if required, referral to social agencies equipped to handle family problems that may be disclosed by investigation. In the absence of convincing identification, an officer on the street may use his or her best judgment in determining age. Procedures shall be constantly refined in the light of experience, and changes herein may be made on the basis of such experience.
(c) 
In any event, an officer shall within twenty-four (24) hours file a written report on the juvenile incident or shall participate to the extent possible in the preparation and filing of such a report by his supervisor.
(d) 
When a parent, legal guardian or other responsible adult has come to take charge of a juvenile and the appropriate information has been received, the juvenile shall be released to the custody of the parent, legal guardian or other responsible adult. If a parent, legal guardian or other responsible adult cannot be located or fails to take charge of the juvenile, then the juvenile shall be released to appropriate authorities. However, the police department shall have the discretion to refuse to release a juvenile to an adult other than the parent or legal guardian of the juvenile.
(e) 
A juvenile may not be held at the police department for more than six (6) hours; during such time, the following procedures shall be observed:
(1) 
The office must be an unlocked, multipurpose area that is not designated, set aside, or used as a secure detention area or part of a secure detention area;
(2) 
The juvenile may not be secured physically to a cuffing rail, chair, desk, or stationary object;
(3) 
The juvenile may not be held longer than necessary to accomplish the purposes of identification, investigation, processing, release to parent, guardians or custodians, and arrangement of transportation to school or court; and
(4) 
The office may not be designated or intended for residential purposes.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)
Prevailing community standards as reflected by this division require the availability of criminal penalties in order for this division to be a viable instrument for the maintenance of such standards. Consequently, violation of this division by a juvenile, parent or business establishment owner or operator shall be deemed to be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding $500.00. Each day any violation continues constitutes a separate offense.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)
This division shall be reviewed every third year prior to the anniversary date of the ordinance as required by section 370.002 of the Local Government Code. The first review shall be conducted no later than June 27th, 2008, and every third year thereafter. Such review shall be conducted following a public hearing upon the need to continue the ordinance, and the city council shall have the option to continue, abolish or modify the ordinance based upon their review of the ordinance’s effects on the community and on the problems the ordinance is intended to remedy.
(Ordinance 163 adopted 6/27/05; Ordinance 163-2008 adopted 6/23/08; Ordinance 163-2011 adopted 7/25/11; Ordinance 163-2014 adopted 6/23/14; Ordinance 163-2017 adopted 6/26/17)