Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 20, 1995 TAG: 9509200036
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RON BROWN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: FINCASTLE LENGTH: Medium
Tuesday, the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors toughened curfew restriction for people 15 and under, who must not be seen in public between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. unless accompanied by an adult.
If they are, they are in violation of the law and their parents could be hauled into court for letting them stay out too late.
The county's previous ordinance required all people under 18 to be home by 1 a.m.
The new law passed after a public hearing during which no one commented.
Parents who let their children stay out after hours could face six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
``Hopefully, this will put some teeth in the law,'' said Fincastle Supervisor Bonnie Mayo, who pushed for a tougher curfew after receiving vandalism complaints from a Neighborhood Watch organization in Eagle Rock.
Sheriff Reed Kelly said some younger teen-agers and even preteens have been roaming the streets of Eagle Rock at night. Those youngsters have broken windows, unraveled hay bales in fields and moved items in people's yards, Kelly said.
``It is just general mischief,'' Kelly said.
Mayo said she hopes the new law is the solution.
``We'll try this and, hopefully, we'll get at the problem,'' she said.
Kelly said the new ordinance will have to pass muster with the court. Last month a Roanoke judge struck down part of Roanoke's curfew law, saying it was unconstitutionally vague.
The disputed clause made it illegal for parents to permit or ``by insufficient control to allow'' their children to violate the curfew. Offenders faced up to a year in jail.
The Botetourt County ordinance does not mention ``insufficient control'' as a factor in determining violations of the ordinance.
Botetourt County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Judge Dudley ``Buzz'' Emick declined to comment on the new law.
by CNB