The Debate Over Daytime Curfews

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The Debate Over Daytime CurfewsAntony Barone KolencMy family lives just a mile away from an excellent county library, which my homeschooled

children can visit on a nice day in order to check out books for school research or additionalreading. They enjoy the stroll with their older sister and feel empowered to use the librarys

resources. But would they take that walk if they knew that a police officer would stop them,question them, and possibly ticket them or drive them home in the back of a police car? Ithink not.That is just one example of potential harm that a daytime curfew poses for homeschoolingfamilies. These lawsa trend that began to catch on in cities and counties during the

1990sprohibit minors from being in public places during school hours, often at the risk of

a stiff fine or a hearing before a judge. Are these laws necessary, and do they really pose arisk to homeschoolers?

Why a Daytime Curfew?Proponents of daytime curfews are motivated by good intentions: to decrease juvenile crime

and increase the high school graduation rate. Rarely, if ever, are such laws intended totarget homeschoolers. In fact, those children taught at home are often excepted from thecurfew rules. Yet homeschool advocacy groups, including the Home School Legal Defense

Association (HSLDA), are among the most vocal opponents of these laws.

Statistics on the effectiveness of daytime curfews vary widely. For instance, in December

2011during a debate on whether to enact such a law in Covington, Kentucky (a Cincinnatisuburb), the acting police chief of neighboring Newport estimated that his towns curfew had

lowered the rate of daytime crimes committed by minors probably by over 70 percent.1

Yet others, such as Ken Adams, Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of Central

Florida, have studied the issue and suggest that these laws result in little statisticalimprovement to the juvenile crime rate and may even increase truancy.2Whatever their actual impact, daytime curfews continue to be a popular means by which

local governments address perceived juvenile problems. In 2011, cities and counties acrossthe United States considered implementing these laws, passing them in towns such asConcord, California, and Covington, Kentucky, while rejecting passage in places such as

Carlinville, Illinois, and Stoughton, Wisconsin.

Are These Laws Permissible?Opponents of daytime curfews assert several reasons why such laws might be

impermissible. To name just a few, they argue that such laws interfere with a minorsconstitutional rights to freedom of movement or to be secure from unreasonable searches

and seizures. These statutes might also be unconstitutionally vague, making it unclearexactly what conduct is prohibited. Further, they can infringe on parents rights to rear their

children.

There are also concerns that curfews unfairly target minority students. Recently, the LosAngeles City Council considered changes to its law after the American Civil Liberties


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Union (ACLU) raised various concerns, including the over-ticketing of Latino and African-

American students.Even where exceptions for home education are built into a daytime curfew, there is causefor concern. The chance that a child will experience an inconvenient and potentiallyintimidating encounter with police is likely to chill a homeschoolers freedom to go outside

during school hours. After all, there is no way for police to distinguish between a home-educated child and a truant public school student, unless the law also sets up an intrusiveregistration and ID card system.The Supreme Court of the United States has never ruled on the constitutionality of adaytime juvenile curfew. And, despite legal challenges, some courts have upheld these

curfews.3 However, other judges have found them to be problematic and impermissible onseveral grounds.4 Regardless of these mixed results, communities across the nation havepassed, and continue to adopt, curfews as a matter of routine. Very few of them will ever

face judicial scrutiny.

What Should Homeschoolers Do?Daytime curfews have the potential to cause problems for homeschooling families. For thatreason, I offer three points of advice in this area.

First, know whether there is currently a daytime curfew in place for your community andwhether it contains an exception for homeschooled children. The time to learn the law is

now, not when your child comes home in the back of a police car.

Second, keep tabs on local government agendas so you will know if your community is

considering a daytime curfew. If so, you may wish to work with other families to fightagainst these laws or at least to ensure they contain an exception for home-educated

children. On its website, HSLDA has prepared a helpful discussion outlining the objections to

these laws, along with a package on how to present your views against them.

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Third, if yourchild is negatively impacted by a curfew, consult with homeschool legal advocates todetermine whether they can get the citation dismissed or perhaps even bring a suit against

the potentially impermissible law.Curfew proponents and law enforcement officials have the best of intentions in passing andenforcing these statutes. Where an unintended side effect of the law impacts your familysright to homeschool, you are not powerless; consider taking action. Above all, know the law

and know your rights.

Endnotes:1. Mike Rutledge, Daytime Curfew Causes Clamor,Cincinnati.Com (December 4, 2011),available at

news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20111203/NEWS0108/112040314.2. Kenneth Adams, The Effectiveness of Daytime Curfews at Juvenile Crime Prevention,The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 587 (136), available at

http://ann.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/587/1/136.3. For instance, juvenile curfews were approved by the courts in Bykofsky v. Borough ofMiddletown, 401 F. Supp. 1242 (D. Pa. 1975), affd, 535 F.2d 1245 (3d Cir. 1976), Qutb v.

Strauss, 11 F.3d 488 (5th Cir. 1993), and Schleifer v. City of Charlottesville, 159 F.3d 843

(4th Cir. 1998).
http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20111203/NEWS0108/112040314http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20111203/NEWS0108/112040314http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20111203/NEWS0108/112040314http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fann.sagepub.com%2Fcgi%2Freprint%2F587%2F1%2F136&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGf0jjt5TRgi5YhmJrju0xQeBDsqQhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fann.sagepub.com%2Fcgi%2Freprint%2F587%2F1%2F136&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGf0jjt5TRgi5YhmJrju0xQeBDsqQhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fann.sagepub.com%2Fcgi%2Freprint%2F587%2F1%2F136&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGf0jjt5TRgi5YhmJrju0xQeBDsqQhttp://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20111203/NEWS0108/112040314http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20111203/NEWS0108/112040314


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4. For instance, juvenile curfews were struck down in the following cases: Nunez v. San

Diego, 114 F.3d 935 (9th Cir. 1997), and Ramos v. Town of Vernon, 353 F.3d 171 (2d Cir.

2003).5. HSLDAs packet of information for homeschooler inquiries about daytime curfew laws is

available atwww.hslda.org/docs/nche/000010/200308130.pdf.Antony B. Kolenc (J.D., University of Florida College of Law) is an attorney, author, andspeaker. He and his wife have homeschooled their five children for over a decade. He isauthor ofThe Chronicles of Xan historical fiction trilogy, as well as several legal articles.

Learn more about him atwww.antonykolenc.com .Copyright 2012, used with permission. All rights reserved by author. Originally appeared inthe March 2012 issue ofThe Old Schoolhouse Magazine, the education magazine. Readthe magazine free at www.TOSMagazine.com or read it on the go and download the free

apps at www.TOSApps.comto read the magazine on your mobile devices.
http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hslda.org%2Fdocs%2Fnche%2F000010%2F200308130.pdf&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNFcjMoMn9SQeQL4ij_qH33j17CMywhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hslda.org%2Fdocs%2Fnche%2F000010%2F200308130.pdf&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNFcjMoMn9SQeQL4ij_qH33j17CMywhttp://www.antonykolenc.com/http://www.antonykolenc.com/http://www.antonykolenc.com/http://www.tosmagazine.com/http://www.tosmagazine.com/http://www.tosmagazine.com/http://www.tosapps.com/http://www.tosapps.com/http://www.tosapps.com/http://www.tosapps.com/http://www.tosapps.com/http://www.tosmagazine.com/http://www.tosmagazine.com/http://www.antonykolenc.com/http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hslda.org%2Fdocs%2Fnche%2F000010%2F200308130.pdf&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNFcjMoMn9SQeQL4ij_qH33j17CMyw

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The Debate Over Daytime Curfews