Huntington Beach OKs Curfew Fee, Anti-Cruising Law

Hanging out downtown, if you’re under 18 and it’s past 10 p.m., just became expensive.

The City Council on Monday tentatively voted to charge parents $35.80 for every hour that a child caught violating curfew is detained by police until someone picks him up on a second offense. They also gave preliminary approval to an ordinance banning cruising citywide.

“It’s a method of compelling the parents to exert control and responsibility of their child,” said Police Lt. Jon Arnold.

Downtown Main Street has become a main attraction as a hangout and cruising strip for teen-agers, especially during the summer.

“It’s a happening place. There’s a draw,” Arnold said. Teen-agers “are cruising back and forth past the crowds. This causes people to stop their cars and engage in conversation with people on the sidewalk,” causing congestion. “We want to take proactive measures.”

Under the plan, parents and youths would received a warning the first time and be charged the fee for a subsequent offense.

Arnold said police haven’t determined how they will enforce the anti-cruising ordinance. Some agencies use portable computers to track cars or physically write down license plate numbers and vehicle descriptions. Police can ticket a driver who has traveled through an area a third time within a four-hour period.

“The purpose is to restrict people who are continually driving through the area just to drive back and forth,” Arnold said.

The $35.80 per-hour charge to parents and the anti-cruising ordinance are intended to help free police from dealing with teen-age crowds when they could better be used elsewhere. Police said that considerable time and resources are spent trying to unclog areas affected by cruising.

The fee will offset administration costs incurred by the Police Department to detain curfew violators, who “force police officers to protect (them) from committing a crime or becoming a victim,” Arnold said.

Both ordinances are expected to receive final approval later this month and go into effect in mid-June, in time for the summer crowds.

On a summer weekend night, Arnold said, the first three blocks of Main Street from Pacific Coast Highway fill with hundreds of juveniles and, “sometimes more. I’m being conservative. If it’s a Saturday night and it’s a warm day at the beach, it could be almost twice that many.”

Police sweeps of the downtown area after curfew are planned, Arnold said. But to avoid the media frenzy that occurred last year during a sweep, officials probably won’t publicize them in advance.

At the City Council meeting this week, Councilman Tom Harman wondered: “Where are you going to put 40 kids if you have a sweep?”

Arnold said the department’s retired senior volunteers will assist police in detaining juveniles until their parents arrive.

Downtown business owners and residents said the new laws give police what they need to crack down on the problems associated with juveniles.

“They are some handy tools the Police Department needs to take care of the problems that are mounting down there,” said Loretta Wolfe, co-chairwoman of the Downtown Residents’ Assn. “This will send a strong message that this isn’t appropriate to do down there.”

Stephen Daniel, president of the Downtown Business Assn. and owner of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, also applauded the ordinances.

“We just want people to feel comfortable downtown,” Daniel said. “When kids congregate on a corner, it makes people feel unsafe walking down the street.”