[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Passaic 1-18-1979
as Ord. No. 525-79. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The governing body finds that offenses against the laws of the United
States, the laws of the State of New Jersey and the ordinances of the City
of Passaic by minors under the age of 18 years are increasing at an alarming
rate; that in a great many cases a lack of proper supervision and control
of the minor child by his parents or guardians is evident; and that the increasing
problem of criminal and quasi-criminal offenses by children will not be solved
by sanctions imposed upon the children alone, but it is necessary that sanctions
be imposed upon parents or guardians whose neglect of their duty to properly
supervise and control their children is a direct and proximate cause of the
delinquency of those children.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any unemancipated person under the age of 18 years.
Includes either or both natural parents of a minor, the legal guardians
of such minor or any other adult persons who have voluntarily or otherwise
assumed the responsibilities of a natural parent with respect to custody,
care and control of said minor. For the purposes of the enforcement of this
chapter, the term "parent" shall not apply to natural parents, legal guardians
or other persons whose responsibility for the custody and control of such
minor has been transferred to another person or terminated by court order
or by the emancipation of said minor by marriage, military services or other
circumstances. Persons claiming the benefit of any such termination or transfer
of responsibilities shall bear the burden of establishing the same in any
proceedings hereunder.
Includes any of the following acts: defacing, damaging or destroying
public property or the private property of another within the City of Passaic;
knowingly receiving stolen property; breaking and entering or entering without
breaking into the property of another with the intent to steal; threatening
another with the intention of extorting money or anything of value; possession
and/or use of a controlled dangerous substance, as same shall be defined under
Title 24 of the Revised Statutes of New Jersey; or juvenile delinquency based
upon any of the above offenses.
It shall be unlawful for any parent to assist, aid, abet, allow, permit
or encourage a minor to commit a violation of the public peace, as defined
herein, either by overt act, by failure to act or by lack of supervision and
control over such minor. Whenever a minor shall be arrested or detained for
the commission of any such violation of the public peace within the City of
Passaic and said violation of the public peace was substantially contributed
to by the failure of the parent to supervise the minor child or in any way
to assist, aid, abet, allow, permit, suffer or encourage the minor to commit
the violation of public peace, constituting a contribution to the cause of
the juvenile misconduct, it shall be deemed as a violation of this chapter.[1]
The remedy provisions of this chapter shall be cumulative, not exclusive,
and the state or any other agency or person shall have the right to proceed
under any other legally available remedies.
