THOUSAND OAKS : Fines for Party Police Calls Weighed

Parents may be charged for the cost of sending police to break up parties attended by their children under a plan that the Thousand Oaks City Council will consider tonight.

The proposed ordinance would make parents or property owners liable for up to $1,000 in fees for police calls to locations where minors are using liquor or drugs, City Atty. Mark G. Sellers said Monday.

It is intended to complement existing ordinances that make people who throw loud parties subject to similar charges.

Thousand Oaks would be the first Ventura County community to make parents financially responsible for the police costs involved in the supervision of their children, Sellers said.

In recent months, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department has been summoned at least three times to break up large teen-age parties where gang members have congregated and caused a disturbance in Thousand Oaks.

A drive-by slaying of a 20-year-old Thousand Oaks woman May 31 underscores the need for police intervention in some cases, Sellers said.

“The real point here is that parents ought to take command or control to supervise their kids,” he said. “There’s more attention now because of the drive-by shooting.”

The proposed law is similar to one adopted by the Illinois community of Arlington, Sellers said.

In that city, property owners or adult tenants could be liable for up to $500 in fines, and parents of minors could be liable for damages and fines when police have to break up a party.