Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 6, 1995 TAG: 9504060061
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Patricia Holdaway is believed to be the first parent in Virginia to receive jail time for a curfew violation, according to Kent Willis, executive director of the Virginia branch of the American Civil Liberties Union.
While the ACLU is opposed to curfews in general for juveniles, the group is especially concerned that Holdaway was sentenced to 10 days in jail Monday for allowing her 16-year-old son to stay out past 11 p.m.
"This is the harshest application of a curfew ordinance anywhere in Virginia," Willis said.
Holdaway - who has said she was asleep when her son slipped out late at night - plans to appeal her conviction in Roanoke Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. Willis said the ACLU will offer any assistance she may need.
"If the mission of the juvenile court is to heal families and to make the family work better, this is the exact opposite of what the court should be doing," Willis said of the decision by Judge Joseph Bounds.
"If anything, this has exacerbated the problems in the family by splitting up mother and child."
Holdaway's appeal is scheduled to be heard next month in Roanoke Circuit Court. Defense attorney Jeffrey Dorsey, who argues that the ordinance is "unconstitutionally vague," said he has not been in contact with the ACLU but is open to its offer of assistance.
Roanoke is one of a few localities that have curfew ordinances punishable by jail time, Willis said. Most of the 40-some ordinances adopted by localities around Virginia carry only fines, he said.
And a survey conducted by the ACLU several years ago found that curfew laws are used sparingly, if at all.
"They were essentially lying fallow," Willis said. "They were used only occasionally by police officers to move kids along."
In fact, Holdaway was the first parent to the arrested under the ordinance since it was passed by Roanoke City Council in 1992. The law requires children 16 and younger to be off the streets by 11 on weeknights and midnight Friday through Sunday. Exceptions include juveniles running errands for their parents, responding to emergencies or traveling to and from work.
Parents who allow their children to be out after curfew more than twice a year are subject to a misdemeanor conviction punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.
In Holdaway's case, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald Teaster has said she was warned after her son's fourth curfew violation that she could be arrested if it happened again. Holdaway, 36, was allowed to remain free on bond pending her appeal.
Although the ACLU opposes curfews for juveniles on the grounds that they violate the First Amendment right of assembly, higher courts generally have upheld laws with exceptions similar to the one in Roanoke.
by CNB