3 responses to Waco City Council meeting addressed daytime curfew

1. 

   Valerie said on September 20, 2007

   Texas group fights curfew, 19 September 2007, United Press International

   A citizens group in Waco, Texas, vowed to do everything it can to block plans for a daytime curfew for juveniles.

   Wacoans Against the Curfew Ordinance has hired legal counsel to assist in its battle and is circulating a petition against the measure, the Waco (Texas) Herald-Tribune reported Wednesday.

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2. 

   Valerie said on September 21, 2007

   Daytime curfew proposal draws organized opposition, lawsuit threat, 19 September 2007, Waco Tribune Herald, Waco, Texas

   The debate over a proposed Waco daytime curfew for juveniles developed into a full-out battle Tuesday, when a newly formed organization announced it is prepared to do whatever it takes to kill the measure.

   Calling itself Wacoans Against the Curfew Ordinance, the group has retained legal counsel and has been circulating a petition. The group helped turn out about 70 opponents of the measure during Tuesday night’s city council meeting.

   Leading the charge is Deborah Korpi, president of the Waco chapter of the Eagle Forum, a national organization that takes a conservative bent on advocating for the protection of civil liberties. …

   Korpi said her group will sue the city if the ordinance passes.

   …

   Currently, the ordinance specifies that a child found in violation of the curfew would receive a warning before being ticketed. However, that procedure would not allow police to pick up those students and have them returned to school because juveniles cannot be detained by officers based on a warning.

   McDurham said the curfew task force will have to re-evaluate whether they want to retain the warning provision or remove it so police can have a more immediate ability to return violators to school.

   “It was really our hope to have a warning and then a citation,” she said. “The council will make that decision, but we don’t like the idea of a kid getting a warning (who) is supposed to be in school and still left in the street. That is the dilemma.”

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3. 

   Valerie said on September 22, 2007

   Editorial: Truancy matters, 21 September 2007, Waco Tribune Herald – Waco, Texas

   A suit threatened by homeschooling parents brings into focus one of the sticky issues of imposing a daytime curfew during the school year.

   They are many.

   They also are navigable.

   The fact that the city is discussing the matter of truancy is a positive sign. It’s not only an education issue but a public safety issue.

   But in so doing, the city must acknowledge, and be ready to deal with, all the intricacies of enforcing such a curfew without violating people’s rights or harassing young people who have legitimate reasons not to be in school.

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