Curfew Sweep
By Albert B. Kelly
As part of Cumberland County’s
Positive Youth Coalition, several municipalities in Cumberland County decided
to take a pro-active approach in their efforts to stem violence and crime;
namely by implementing a County-wide curfew sweep of juveniles who, knowingly
or unknowingly, break the curfew laws in our respective communities.
This coordinated effort is
the result of months of collaboration and it was carried out through monthly
meetings staffed and facilitated by the Walter Rand Institute out of Rutgers-Camden.
One of the many things our group has focused on over the months is identifying
juvenile “hotspots” in the three large cities in Cumberland County through a
data-driven profile of crime, which includes major and minor offenses, and
underlying cause.
The coalition includes representatives
of local and county law enforcement, the County Prosecutor, Mayors, and
Freeholders; social service providers, the faith-based community, state
officials, educators and other grass-roots organizations. Started in Vineland,
the coalition approach was able to expand county-wide in recognition of the
fact that problems are not confined to set locations and a county-wide effort
would be much more successful in fighting crime.
This past Friday, August 1st,
was the first of several planned sweeps throughout the county. This sweep was “non-punitive”;
meaning the emphasis was less on punishment and more on educating. Toward that
end, the Family Success Center on Spruce St. became the location where young offenders came; providing an
opportunity to speak with them about curfew violations but more importantly,
talking with them about the night, their reasons for being out late, consequences,
and bad outcomes away from home.
After interviewing these
young men; specifically 10 individuals ranging in age from 13-17 years-old,
parents and/or guardians were contacted and asked to pick up their young
charges and take them home. Throughout, interviews were conducted by our contingent
of local Chaplains with staffing from the Family Success Center.
At first glance, I suppose
the most eye opening thing from my vantage point is that we simply must do a
better job of informing the public about such things as curfew laws; what they
are and why they exist. Truth be told, I’m
saddened that we have to do such things. I say that knowing a few of these
teens were on the street because they slipped out of the house unknowingly, some
had no real excuse; while others were out visiting friends. The youngest was picked
up going to the store for candy.
In some instances, I have to
wonder about the level of parental supervision. Of course we older folks can
remember “youthful exploits”; as we all did things back in the day that seemed
harmless; things that are now against the law.
And yet while I understand this, I also know that times have changed and
the world is a much more violent and dangerous place. There’s little margin for
error and we need to protect those we love; especially the young.
We who are parents or
grandparents have to be held more accountable for teaching our young. Even
though there are single parents and grandparents raising children- even though
things are harder than before- we still have to be accountable.
I say this, because on the 10pm-2:00am
watch, those apprehended had little remorse or even much in the way of concern.
For some, it was like a game of hide and seek writ large on the streets of the
night. And even though we shared the stats and stories to make the point that
youth out at night are at much greater risk of being victims of crime, they
remained unconvinced and largely unmoved.
But we’ll continue the effort;
if for no other reason than to let them know someone cares. If for no other
reason than to build relationships so when bad things happen, they’ll know
where to turn.
Our collaborative efforts
will continue and our work will go on from month to month or even weekly if
that’s what it takes to find ways to stop this madness and violence. But we
need the parents to stand up and be a part of the solution rather than a silent
or even apathetic part of the problem. This time it was a non-punitive informational
“sweep” and the call to come “pick up your son”; next time they might not be so
lucky and the call will be to notify the next of kin.