Newport Beach : Final Vote on Curfew Proposal Set for Monday

Proposed changes in the Newport Beach curfew ordinance, which business owners and residents on the Balboa Peninsula say is necessary to stem a tide of youthful rowdiness, will come before the City Council Monday night for a final vote.

Newport Beach enacted its curfew law in 1949, but it has not been enforced since 1978 because of concerns over its constitutional validity. At its meeting June 24, the council tentatively approved changes that would permit police to enforce the curfew by modifying it to exempt minors engaged in “constitutionally protected” activities.

The revised curfew would be aimed at minors who loiter after 10 p.m. and would not apply to youths who are attending sporting events, going to theaters or church- and school-related functions, traveling to or from jobs or who are with their parents.

Minors found loitering for extended periods could be questioned by police and taken into custody, according to City Atty. Robert Burnham. Police would not formally arrest curfew-breakers, but they would turn them over to their parents or guardians.

Councilwoman Jackie Heather, who supports the ordinance, said she will again vote in favor of the proposal. She added that she plans to introduce a motion to change the curfew from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m.

Although the curfew is necessary to solve the problem of the nightly youth invasion of the peninsula, Heather said, the council should “try to give a clear message to the Police Department to be cool and not to be heavy-handed, if possible.”

Area teen-agers who are against the curfew are expected to attend the meeting to register their opposition.

Viktoria Murray, 16, of Fountain Valley, who has been organizing sit-in demonstrations at the Balboa Pier to protest the proposal, said she is organizing a recruiting drive to persuade youths who frequent the peninsula to attend the 7:30 p.m. meeting.

“If they care, they can give up one night of hanging out to be there,” she said.