Curbing Crime : Oxnard Police Starting to Crack Down on Curfew

It’s after 10 p.m. in Oxnard. Do you know where your kids are?

If the Oxnard Police Department knows, then they may be violating the city’s curfew.

Although Oxnard has had a curfew for years, Oxnard police recently began a concentrated effort to crack down on teen-agers roaming the streets at night.

Police say it’s a way to prevent vandalism, car thefts, gang fights and other problems because many crimes are committed by juveniles late at night.

“We’re just using it as a tool to combat other problems,” Oxnard Detective Steven Vendt said.

So far, police have arrested 33 juveniles on suspicion of violating curfew. Curfew patrols prowl the streets of Oxnard primarily on weekends, but as summer approaches and teen-agers have more time on their hands, police say they plan to do curfew sweeps some weekdays as well.

Critics say curfew enforcement has the potential to be abused by police officers who really can’t be sure whether they have encountered a juvenile until after they’ve already stopped the person.

Curfew can be used as an excuse to detain someone, and officers also have to be careful that they’re approaching teen-agers who are loitering, not just walking down the street, critics say.

“The downside is that innocent people are interfered with by the police,” said Zane Smith, a deputy public defender assigned to juvenile cases. “There are constitutional limitations to what a curfew ordinance can be.”

Violating curfew is an infraction. Sometimes police officers give teen-agers a warning and send them on their way. Sometimes they give them a citation for being out too late. Other times, officers will haul juveniles to the police station, and call parents to come and pick them up.

Police say they have a lot of discretion on the streets and that what they decide to do with teen-agers depends a lot on how the youths act when they’re stopped.

When Vendt and Officer Marty Meyer stopped two youths after dark about a week ago, they initially let them go with a warning. They bumped into them again 10 minutes later and decided to cite them after the boys muttered excuses about why they hadn’t gone home like they said they would.

Vendt and Meyer saw the youths walking on Saviers Road about 11 p.m. one Saturday. Vendt made a U-turn in the unmarked police car he was driving and stopped in front of them.

Meyer stepped out and said to them, “Hold on, fellas.”

The officers questioned the pair briefly, then let the two brothers go after warning them about the curfew. The youths, 16 and 17, told Meyer and Vendt that they were on their way home from a friend’s house.

Meyer shrugged and said, “They were two blocks from home. Technically, they’re in violation, but we don’t want to establish a protocol where we’re arresting everyone on the way home.”

A few blocks later, the officers met them again. This time, the youths were coming from a different direction and they were strolling on Date Street about 11:10 p.m.

Vendt scowled at the boys, who looked startled at seeing the officers again.

“Where are we going?” Vendt asked. “I thought we were going home.”

The 17-year-old appeared flushed and mumbled unconvincingly, “We’re, uh, taking an alternate route.”

Vendt answered sarcastically, “Well, it looks like we’re in violation of curfew now. Where do your parents think you are now?”

The younger boy told him that they were going home from their mother’s house to their father’s house. “We got lost,” he said.

Vendt ordered them to sit on the curb as he radioed for police officers in a squad car to escort the youths home to their father.

As they waited, Meyer warned the youths, “This is not one of the better places to be wandering around. You guys could have been jumped.”

The 17-year-old seemed embarrassed about being cited for breaking curfew.

“I never, ever got a ticket,” he said.

After they left with the officers, Vendt said he had wanted to cut the boys some slack the first time, but couldn’t do it after bumping into them again so soon.

“I’m human; I don’t like being lied to,” Vendt said, noting that the first time the youths had said they were coming from a friend’s house, not their mother’s.

Police said sometimes parents can be cited for curfew also, if their children are repeat offenders and they do not appear to be doing anything to keep them at home nights. Officers have not cited any parents so far, police said.

After the youths are cited for curfew, their cases are referred to Ventura County probation officers who decide what to do with the teen-agers.

Julie Hedrick, senior deputy probation officer, said first-time curfew offenders who are not on probation for anything else usually receive only a warning letter.

Before staffing dropped in her department, Hedrick said first-time offenders used to attend a one-hour curfew class with a parent. The classes were taught by probation officers who warned teen-agers and parents about the curfew laws and other laws affecting juveniles. The last class was held about 10 days ago, she said.

“It is our hope that we can get back to the classes if we get additional staffing,” Hedrick said. “We think it’s a good delinquency prevention tool.”

She said juveniles who are on probation and are cited for curfew could receive anything from community service to counseling, depending on the case.

Smith, who defends teen-agers in Juvenile Court, said breaking curfew is generally not considered a major crime. Police officers use it as an excuse to stop juveniles and find other, more serious violations, he said.

“A lot of curfew violations lead to other things,” Smith said.

He said a high percentage of curfew cases that cross his desk are questionable. Many officers misunderstand the curfew law, which is directed toward loiterers who are “wandering about without lawful business,” he said.

“If they follow what the ordinance says, there’s a loitering law to be enforced,” Smith said. “That’s what the officer is supposed to be looking for. If someone is walking down the street, then what they’re doing is not against the curfew ordinance. They can’t just pull them over because they’re out and young. It’s not illegal for a young person to be out at 11 p.m.”

Police agree, saying curfew enforcement could be abused if officers don’t exercise discretion and common sense.

“You have to be careful,” said Sgt. Chuck Hookstra, who heads the curfew patrol. “We don’t want to arrest a kid who is on the way home from the store.”

Oxnard police target certain neighborhoods and known hangouts, looking for late-night loiterers, Hookstra said. Liquor stores and 24-hour convenience stores are popular places for juveniles, he said.

Oxnard’s curfew patrol has done three sweeps so far. The second time, it was publicized ahead of time and officers didn’t catch anyone violating curfew, Hookstra said.

Also being swept up on curfew patrol are baby-faced young adults who look under 18 but are not. They risk getting arrested for other violations when officers pull them over on suspicion of breaking curfew.

During a recent curfew sweep, Oxnard police arrested a 20-year-old for carrying a .38-caliber pistol in his car. Vendt said he saw him come out of a liquor store and when the youth spotted the detective, he handed a six-pack to his friend, which caused Vendt to stop him and search his car.

But police say they usually release a lot of people who look young but turn out to be older than 18. Officers stop them initially for curfew and, after they find out their age, they usually run them for outstanding warrants. If there is none, they let them go.

Vendt and Meyer recently stopped two young men in a white Volkswagen about 11:40 p.m., thinking they were curfew violators.

They turned out to be 20 and 22, and the officers dismissed them after running a warrant check.

“The kids looked baby-faced,” Meyer said as he watched them drive off.

In other Ventura County cities, curfew is also enforced, but usually not as stringently, authorities said.

“We really don’t write a lot of curfew citations,” said Ventura County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jeff Matson, who patrols Camarillo. “Usually, we just warn them to go home.”

In Simi Valley, officers enforce curfew if a lot of teen-agers gather in one area, Sgt. Mike King said.

“We don’t enforce curfew unless it’s a problem,” King said. “ A few years ago, we had hundreds of kids hanging around the parking lots of the shopping centers. We started enforcing curfew and, pretty soon, it went away.”

Teen-agers grumble about the law, saying they get hassled and that it really doesn’t stop them from going out after dark anyway.

Tyla Baez, 17, of Oxnard was stopped with her friend Claudia Gardenas by Vendt and Meyer recently. It was 1 a.m. Sunday and they were walking on H Street on their way home.

Meyer approached them and said, “Ladies, how old are you? Have you heard about the fact that we’re out here on curfew?”

Tyla grinned and answered, “Yeah, I heard about it.”

They let her and Gardenas, 20, continue walking home after warning them.

Tyla said she has been cited for curfew several times and even attended a curfew class last year. She lives with her aunt, who gives Tyla a curfew of 1 a.m. to be inside the house.

“I think they should extend it (the city curfew) a little longer, maybe to midnight,” Tyla said. “Everybody knows about the curfew, but they don’t like it, and they still go out. I’m still going to go out and have fun with my friends.”