Menlove1

Brandon Menlove
English 2010
Professor Howe
Nov/12/2015
Locked Down or Let Loose
Its Saturday night and it feels like there is nothing to do. My friends and I have
wasted most of our weekend playing stupid video games. I sigh with frustration and say,
"we are wasting our Saturday night doing nothing. Lets go create havoc and be
mischievous." Next thing I know, all seven of us are on top of a hill with a perfect view
of a busy road with eggs in our hands aiming for passing cars. We are having a blast until
we hear the sound of sirens coming near. After a crazy and long chase, we all end up
sitting of the curb with handcuffs on our wrists. The police officer gives us tickets for
criminal mischief. But the worst part of it all was that the cops called my parents and I
was grounded for 3 months. Looking back on it now I ask myself, Was it worth getting
into trouble? Absolutely! Boys will be boys! From that night forward I had a set curfew
enforced by my parents.
Do curfews help teens stay out of trouble? Parents and future parents will need
to take a step back and decide whether curfews are appropriate for their teen and if it will
help them stay out of trouble? This paper will view both sides if curfews help or not.
First, I would like to talk about those that say a curfew is wrong to enforce upon
teens. From debate.org an anonymous writer says, Curfews cause more troubles than it
prevents them. 1. Curfews can cause contention between the teenager and the parents. 2.
Curfews can cause teenagers to panic upon being late leading them to rush home,

Menlove2
increasing the chance of having a car accident. According to recently released statistics,
about 10 U.S. teens ages 16 to 19 die in teen-driven car accidents every day. And even
though teens make up only 6.7 percent of all motorists in the United States, they account
for 14 percent of the fatal crashes. Officials say teens' inexperience and recklessness
(speeding) on the road have a lot to do with the deadly statistics.
In an interview, a parent, Maria Noakes, was asked the question; do curfews keep
teens out of trouble? Her response was, Curfews do not keep teens out of trouble. Good
parents do. Parents will teach their teenager what is good and what is bad, and then it is
up to the teen to decide what to do. Noakes feels that being a good parent has a lot to do
with the decisions that their children make regardless if a curfew is set. Whether the teen
has the intention to do good or bad a curfew will not stop teens for making their own
decision.
Some states have taken it upon themselves to create a law that enforces a curfew
for teenagers. Depending on the state the time frame may change. In Utah this law is
enforced under the state legislature. The juvenile curfew was established in 1997 and
sponsored by state legislature Lorin v. Jones writes the law number as 76-10-2201
entitled Curfew hours- Violation law. This law states:
(1) The hours between 12 midnight and 6 a.m. each day of the year are
established as statewide curfew hours. (2) It is a violation of the
chapter for any minor under the age of 16 years to be or remain in any
public or semipublic place during curfew hours. (Lorin v. Jones)
Many people have a problem with this law. The whole purpose of the curfew law
is to keep teens from creating criminal acts. The problem with that is that it

Menlove3
criminalizes all teens. In a newspaper article, written by John DiConsiglio, he writes
about a 16-year-old girl was arrested for violating a 10 p.m. curfew in San Diego.
Leaving a coffee house with friends, Alleyn was stopped by police officers and
asked her age. When she told them she was 16, they motioned to their squad car and
told her to get in. She was taken to police headquarters, fingerprinted and
photographed. (DiConsiglio 6)
Her crime? The one-block walk from the coffee house to her friends car put
Alleyn in a public area after 10 p.m. Although Alleyn had done nothing criminal she
was guilty by presumption. Assuming that someone is going to commit a crime does
not give police the right to arrest anyone. The same applies with the curfew law.
Alleyn also points out that the curfew law is taking away her fist amendment. In the
Constitution it states, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of
religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,
or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
Government for a redress of grievances. The Freedom of Assembly is one of the few
constitutional liberties that the teens may have as long as it is peaceably to
assemble.
Jonathan Zimmerman a professor of history and education at New York
University says, Curfew doesnt keep kids out of trouble. Zimmerman explains that
in a study done in Detroit, after it adopted a teen curfew in 1976, juvenile crime
dropped 6 percent during the curfew hours, but it in creased 13 percent in the
midafternoon. According to a nationwide study, more than 80 percent of juvenile

Menlove4
offenses take place between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m., which is outside most curfews.
Teens are going to get into trouble whether there is a curfew or not.
As I have gotten older and have since gotten married, my wife and I have
contemplated whether we should enforce a curfew for our future children. I asked my
parents why they put a curfew on me. Did they not trust me? They responded, Its not
that we dont trust you, its that we didnt trust the world outside. According to my
mom, by me having a curfew brought a physiological comfort for herself and my
father that I was out of dangers way.
There are many that are in favor of teen curfew believing that safety is more
important that staying out late with friends. In 1975, the very first case to take up the
issue of juvenile court cases, Bykofsky v. Borough of Middletown, appeared before the
court. Parents argued that the curfew in Middletown, Pennsylvania violated first and
fourteenth amendment rights. The court decided that preserving the safety of the
teenagers outweighed the violation of freedoms. Curfews may be most effective at
protecting kids from society, rather than society from kids. A statistic taken in phoenix,
Jonathan Zimmerman said, Crimes against teens have dropped by about 8 percent
during curfew hours.
In an essay entitled, The case of the girl that stayed out to late. Lieutenant
Bruce Pfefferkorn of San Diego Police Department said, Curfews cut down juvenile
crime and prevent kids from being the targets of crime. (DiConsiglio)
In the end many will say that laws are there for a reason. Whether those reasons
make sense or dont make sense, the fact of it all is that they are laws! And if laws get
broken there is a punishment attached to it. The punishment for juvenile curfew violators

Menlove5
are fines, community service or required enrollment in after-school programs, restriction
of drivers license privileges, and possible detention in jail or juvenile hall. We may not
like laws but they are there to keep us safe.
In conclusion, do curfews keep teens out of trouble? Many say yes and others say
no. Now that the information is presented, a parent must evaluate what option is write for
them and teenager.

Menlove6
Works Cited
Beck, Melinda, and Claudia Kalb. "`Why Aren't You Home?'." Newsweek 126.3 (1995):
55. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Nov. 2015.
"Car Crashes Are Top Teen Killer. (Cover Story)." Current Events 104.23 (2005): 1-3.
Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Nov. 2015.
"Constitute." Constitute. Web. 14 Nov. 2015.
<https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/United_States_of_America_1992
>
DiConsiglio, John. "The Case Of The Girl Who Stayed Out Too Late." Scholastic Update
128.5 (1995): 6. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Nov. 2015.
"Does Curfew Keep Teen out of Trouble." Does Curfew Keep Teens out of Trouble?
Web. 13 Nov. 2015. <http://www.debate.org/opinions/does-curfew-keep-teensout-of-trouble>.
Newton, Adam. "First Amendment Center." First Amendment Center. First Amendment
Center, 16 Sept. 2002. Web. 14 Nov. 2015.
Ryan, David. "Curfew Laws for a Teenager in Utah." Everyday Life. Demand Media.
Web. 13 Nov. 2015. <http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/curfew-laws-teenagerutah-37623.html>.
"Utah State Legislature." Utah Legislature SB0042. Web. 13 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.le.state.ut.us/~1997/bills/sbillint/sb0042.htm>.
Zeiger, Stacy. "Is Your Teen's Curfew Breaking the Law?" LoveToKnow. Facts about
Teen Curfew. Web. 12 Nov. 2015.
<http://teens.lovetoknow.com/Facts_About_Teenagers_Curfews>.
Zimmerman, Jonathan. "Curfews Don't Keep Kids out of Trouble." Newsworks.org. 25
Oct. 2011. Web. 12 Nov. 2015. <http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/local/thatshistory/28876-curfews-dont-keep-kids-out-of-trouble>.