A proposed countywide curfew is getting a cool response from Orem officials.
Public Safety Chief Ted Peacock said the proposed curfew is too restrictive and would be difficult to enforce. The City Council agreed to stick with the city's existing ordinance.Springville Police Chief Leland Bowers had proposed that the county and cities adopt a uniform curfew ordinance to make it easier for police agencies to enforce the law. At the moment curfew laws, which dictate when juveniles may be out on the streets, vary among cities.
For example, the curfew on weeknights for youths under the age of 16 is 10 p.m. in Payson, 11 p.m. in Orem and 1 a.m. in American Fork.
Strict curfew enforcement helps prevent late-night juvenile criminal activity and gang activity, according to police agencies. But the staggered curfew hours let juveniles skip from one city to another, they say.
The proposed ordinance would set the curfew for juveniles under 16 at 10 p.m. during the week and 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. For 16- and 17-year-olds, the curfew during the week would be 11 p.m. and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
The curfew would not apply to married teenagers, those who live on their own or teens traveling to or from an activity.
In Orem, the curfew for teenagers under 16 is 11 p.m. every night. For youths 16 and 17 the weeknight curfew is 11 p.m.; on Fridays and Saturdays the curfew is 1 a.m.
"Ours seems to be more enforceable," Peacock said. "In summer, it's barely dark at 10 p.m."
Peacock also said that providing an exception for teens en route from one location to another makes the proposed ordinance "almost impossible to enforce."
"There's always a reason these kids can think of why they're out," Peacock said.
Peacock said he doesn't see much need for a countywide curfew.
"We get by fine with the ordinance we've got," Peacock said. "Ours seems to make a little more sense than the ones they've been struggling with."