Curfew Law Enforcement

At last. Finally, thank God, something is being done that if continued will allow people who have been harassed, threatened and attacked, among other things, for many years to begin to regain control of their communities and the welfare of themselves and their loved ones.

Enforcement of the curfew law (Metro, Sept. 3) by the Los Angeles Police Department, if continued, will solve many of the problems whose very roots were begun by roving gangs of juveniles roaming the streets at will under the cover of darkness, committing acts of vandalism, crime and mischief, destroying entire communities and undermining the general social order that people expect as a routine in a civilized society.

And the matter of parent permissiveness, no matter if by design or omission, points out the seriousness of this situation and how appropriate and fully supported the police action is.

Omitting the publication of the acts of vandalism, crime and other violent behavior of the youth gangs by the news media is a source of anonymity relied upon by those who commit these acts to limit the knowledge of their activities and make it appear to be limited to South-Central Los Angeles or other immediate areas in which the juveniles live.

To be able to look forward to the day that neighborhoods begin to return to the way one dreams of it--a place where children can play safely in their yards (not to mention public parks), one can safely walk to the local store or stop and gas the car at the local gas station or, of all things, be able to worship at the church of one’s choice without fear of criminal assault--is heartwarming beyond anything we’ve experienced in recent memory.

All of this can be the result of simply enforcing the curfew law.

J.H. ViDAHL

Los Angeles