Village of Morrisville, NY Chapter 70 Curfew

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Morrisville 5-9-1996 by L.L. No. 2-1996. Amendments noted where applicable.]

§ 70-1 Definitions.

For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivatives shall have the meaning given herein:

CURFEW HOURS

A. 11:00 p.m. on any such Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday night until 6:00 a.m. of the following day; and

B. 11:00 p.m. on any Friday or Saturday until 6:00 a.m. of the following day.

ESTABLISHMENT

Any privately owned place of business or facility to which the public is invited, including but not limited to any place of amusement or entertainment.

PUBLIC PLACE

Any place to which the public has access and includes, but is not limited to, streets, highways and the common areas of schools, apartment houses, condominiums, townhouses, office buildings, transport facilities and shops.

MINOR

Any person under the age of 16 years.

PARENT

Any person who is:

A. A natural parent, adoptive parent or step parent of the minor; or

B. At least 18 years of age and authorized by a parent or guardian to have the care and custody of a minor.

REMAIN

To:

A. Linger, stay, wander, idle, stroll; or

B. Fail to leave any premises when requested to do so by a police officer, owner or other person in control of the premises.

OPERATOR

Any individual, firm, association, partnership or corporation operating, managing or conducting any establishment. The term includes the members or partners of an association or partnership and the officers of a corporation.

§ 70-2 Commission of offense.

[Amended 6-12-1997 by L.L. No. 2-1997]

A. A minor commits an offense if he/she remains in any public place or on the premises of any establishment within the Village of Morrisville during curfew hours or refuses the lawful orders of a police officer during such curfew hours.

B. A parent or guardian of such minor commits an offense if he/she:

(1) Knowingly permits or has constructive knowledge of; or

(2) By insufficient control allows the minor to remain in any public place or on the premises of any establishment within the boundaries of the Village of Morrisville during curfew hours. Insufficient control shall be presumptively established upon each repeat offense by the same minor.

C. The owner, operator or any employee of any establishment commits an offense if he/she knowingly allows a minor to remain upon the premises of an establishment during the curfew hours.

§ 70-3 Defenses.

A. It is a defense to prosecution that the minor was:

(1) Accompanied by the minor's parent or guardian;

(2) On an errand at the direction of the minor's parent or guardian, without any detour or stop;

(3) In a motor vehicle involved in interstate travel;

(4) Engaged in an employment activity, or going to or returning home from an employment activity, without any detour or stop;

(5) Involved in an emergency;

(6) On the sidewalk abutting the minor's residence or abutting the residence of a next door neighbor if the neighbor did not file a complaint with a law enforcement agency regarding the minor's presence;

(7) Attending an official school, religious or other recreational activity supervised by adults and sponsored by a municipality, a civic organization or any similar entity that takes responsibility for the minor; or going to or returning home from, without any detour or stop, an official school, religious or other recreational activity supervised by adults and sponsored as so stated above; or

(8) Has been emancipated from his or her parent under New York State law.

B. It is a defense to prosecution that the owner, operator or employee of an establishment promptly notified a law enforcement agency having jurisdiction in the Village of Morrisville that a minor was present on the premises of the establishment during curfew hours and refused to leave.

§ 70-4 Enforcement.

[Amended 6-12-1997 by L.L. No. 2-1997]

A. This chapter shall be enforced by any police officer who has jurisdiction within the Village of Morrisville.

B. Before taking any enforcement action under this section, a police officer shall ask the apparent offender's age and reason for being in the public place, or for allowing such minor to remain on the premises.

C. The police officer, upon finding such minor in apparent violation of this chapter, shall direct such minor to proceed at once to his or her home or usual place of abode.

D. Upon the refusal of the minor to so proceed, the police officer shall return said minor to the custody of his or her parent or guardian either by transporting the minor to his residence, or by requiring a parent or guardian to report to a location designated by the police officer to take custody of said minor. In either case, upon the minor's first offense, the parent or guardian will be given a warning and informed that subsequent offenses by the same minor will render the parent or guardian subject to prosecution under § 70-2 of this chapter.

E. The police officer shall not issue an appearance ticket or make an arrest under this section unless the police officer reasonably believes that a violation has occurred and that, based on any response and/or other circumstances, no defense is present.

F. All appearance tickets issued hereunder shall be returnable in the Village Court of the Village of Morrisville, except where jurisdiction rests solely within the Family Court of the State of New York.

§ 70-5 Prosecution and penalties for offenses.

A. Any person committing an offense against this chapter shall be guilty of disorderly conduct punishable by:

(1) A fine not to exceed $150 or seven days imprisonment, or both; or

(2) A sentence to community service, as determined by the court.

B. Violations shall be prosecuted by the Village Attorney in accordance with the provisions of the Village Law.