[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Carneys Point 10-14-1963 as Ord. No. 166. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended 11-15-1995 by Ord. No. 595]
It shall be unlawful for any minor under the age of 17 years to loiter, idle, wander, stroll or play in or remain in or be upon the public streets, highways, roads, alleys, parks, playgrounds, public places, public buildings, places of amusement and entertainment, places of business carried on for profit to which the public is invited, vacant lots or other public places, either on foot or in any vehicle, within the confines of the Township of Carneys Point between the hour of 9:00 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday of each week and the hour of 6:00 a.m. on the morning following each of said days; and between the hour of 10:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and the hour of 6:00 a.m. on the morning following said days. The provisions of this section, however, shall not apply to any such minor accompanied by his parent or parents, guardian or other adult person having the care or custody of such minor. Furthermore, the provisions of this section shall not apply to any minor who shall be proceeding directly to or from an employment obligation or any activity formally sponsored by a governmental entity, a church or a civic or charitable organization within 30 minutes prior to the commencement of such activity or 30 minutes immediately following the conclusion of such activity.
It shall be unlawful for the parent or parents, guardian or other adult person having the care or custody of a minor under the age of 17 years to permit such minor to loiter, idle, wander, stroll or play in or remain in or be upon the public streets, highways, roads, alleys, parks, playgrounds, public places, public buildings, places of amusement and entertainment, places of business carried on for profit to which the public is invited, vacant lots or other public places, either on foot or in any vehicle, within the confines of the Township of Carneys Point between the hours set forth in § 76-1 hereof; provided, however, that the provisions of this section shall not apply to any such minor accompanied by his parent or parents, guardian or other adult person having the care or custody of the minor or where the minor is upon an emergency errand or legitimate business directed by his parent or parents, guardian or other adult person having the care or custody of the minor.
It shall be unlawful for any owner or operator of any establishment as described in §§ 76-1 and 76-2 of this chapter to suffer or permit such minor to loiter, idle, wander, stroll or play in or remain in or be upon the premises and all other places as set forth in §§ 76-1 and 76-2 of this chapter during the times therein set forth subject to the provisions contained in said §§ 76-1 and 76-2.
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any minor below the age of 17 years who shall be gainfully employed, who shall be a bona fide student of a school of evening instruction, who shall be in attendance at a function sponsored by a religious or school organization or who shall be in attendance at a properly supervised recreational program during the time necessarily required to travel between the place of assembly and such minor's place of residence.
Should an emergency arise necessitating a minor child under the age of 17 years being dispatched upon an errand requiring his presence upon any street, highway, road or roadway or any other place or area open to the public during the hours to which the use thereof by such unattended minor child is prohibited by this chapter, such child shall have in his possession a note or message in writing, signed by a person of his household over the age of 21 years, stating the nature of the errand, the necessity therefor, the place or destination at which the mission is to be accomplished, the time such message was executed and the approximate time required for the errand. Any abuse of the purpose or spirit of this section shall constitute a violation of the provisions of this chapter.
A. 
Every member of the Police Department of the Township of Carneys Point and all other officials charged with law enforcement within the Township are hereby authorized, empowered and directed to enforce the provisions of this chapter, and it shall be a part of their official duty and obligation to the Township Committee and the public at large to follow the directive prescribed in this section.
B. 
It shall be the duty of the apprehending officer or official to take the minor child into protective custody. He shall then make a complete record of the circumstances under which the child was first seen and discovered in an apparent violation of the purposes of this chapter, and such record shall include the name and address of the minor child, the names and addresses of all persons who have either legal or moral responsibility for the minor child's well-being and the category of such responsibility (i.e., parent, guardian, custodian, etc.). Upon completion of a record of all salient facts available, the apprehending official shall see that the minor is safely transported to his place of residence. In all cases the apprehending official shall report the facts within 24 hours to the Chief of Police of the Township of Carneys Point who, in turn, shall cause all pertinent allegations, facts and circumstances to be recorded as a permanent record for future reference.
Upon receipt of the report required in the preceding section, it shall be the duty of the Chief of Police to serve a formal notice upon all persons whose names appear in the report of the apprehending officer or official or in any inquiry made as a result of such report, who have or seem to have any legal or moral responsibility for the well-being of the minor child involved that there has been a violation of this chapter. The notice prescribed shall be captioned "Notice of First Violation of Curfew Ordinance" and shall contain all pertinent facts in any given case. Such notice may be served personally by any member of the Police Department or mailed by registered letter. For the purposes of this chapter, such notice, when duly produced and admitted as evidence in the Municipal Court of the Township of Carneys Point, shall constitute an unequivocal basis for proceeding with a trial in which a second or subsequent violation hereof is the offense charged.
[Amended 11-5-1995 by Ord. No. 595]
Upon the second or subsequent violation of the provisions of this chapter by either a minor child under the age of 17 years or by any parent, legal guardian or otherwise duly authorized and accredited custodian having lawful care or custody of such minor child or the owner or operator of a business establishment, the Chief of Police of the Township of Carneys Point shall cause an appropriate summons to be issued calling for the appearance of the minor child and all persons who appear to have either a legal or moral responsibility for the care and welfare of such child, and any of the persons in any of the categories specified in this section shall, upon conviction of any violation of this chapter in the Municipal Court of the Township of Carneys Point, be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment not to exceed 90 days, or by both fine and imprisonment.