With help from the cities of Hollister and San Juan Bautista,
San Benito officials hope to draft a universal curfew law that
would cover the entire county, members of the board of supervisors
announced during their meeting last week
With help from the cities of Hollister and San Juan Bautista, San Benito officials hope to draft a universal curfew law that would cover the entire county, members of the board of supervisors announced during their meeting last week.
The supervisors agreed to pursue changes to the current ordinance, and planned for discussions in a July intergovernmental meeting between county and city representatives. In the meeting, which San Juan Bautista representatives will be asked to attend, while the board hopes to come up with the same ordinance for all three places.
Supervisor Robert Rivas wanted to add teeth to the county’s current ordinance and asked for the support of the county’s incorporated cities – Hollister and San Juan Bautista.
“I really think the city curfew and county curfew should be the same thing,” Rivas said. “We need to have the city and county come together just for this purpose.”
As a whole, the board called for parental accountability in the new ordinance.
“There is something in place now, but what we are trying to do is make parents accountable – more accountable than they are now,” Supervisor Margie Barrios said.
Supervisor Anthony Botelho demanded more cooperation from the schools in the area to help with the gang task force and a new curfew, he said.
“There was a good point about our schools – they should be involved with these programs and it’s one of the things that has irked me since we started the gang task force program,” he said, referring to the San Benito High School District’s lack of funding and involvement with the program. “Their involvement has been minimal and quite shameful. And that’s why an ordinance that we pass has to have a fine attached to it and the guardians of that child are accountable.”
The ordinance doesn’t adequately punish someone from breaking the 10 p.m. curfew – or 11 p.m. during summer vacation, Rivas said.
According to the ordinance: “It is unlawful for any person under the age of 18 years to loiter, idle, wander, stroll or play in or upon the public grounds, public places and public buildings, places of amusement and eating places, vacant lots or any unsupervised place between the hours of curfew and daylight immediately following.”
Teenagers are allowed to be out later than the curfew if accompanied by an adult or supervisor, if they are coming back from “a meeting, entertainment, recreational activity or dance” and if the minor is on an “emergency errand,” according to the ordinance.
Sheriff Darren Thompson said a new ordinance is a good first step in creating a better and safer community. And the ordinance will help the developing gang task force.
“We will be contacting people out at night and we will be enforcing the county’s curfew ordinance,” he said during the meeting. “Based on the circumstances, the deputies and officers will be using discretion when enforcing the ordinance. Ideally, the city’s curfew ordinance and the county curfew ordinance should be the same to make the enforcement of it is consistent throughout the entire county.”
But accountability from parents will be necessary, he said.
“We are out to build the best partnerships that we can with the parents of this community,” he said. “Accountability will be a key component of that partnership. There will be other key components as well, but on the topic of the ordinance we should make sure there is some parental accountability.”
In addition to fines handed down to parents, Supervisors Jaime De La Cruz and Barrios asked for educational programs as a first step.
“There are a certain percentage of people out in the community because they work two jobs – and again I’m not trying to make excuses – but the reality is that if were to impose a fee on parents lets say $100 or $200 and they are working a minimal of $8 an hour – that’s two days worth of work,” he said.
Regardless, De La Cruz wants something to be done.
“Get them off the streets after 10 o’clock,” he said.
