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Council shelves youth curfew: Strong public dissent pushes City leaders to consider other avenues
5/16/2008 12:13 AM

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Staff writer
The City of Aiken is holding off on its proposed Youth Protection Ordinance, at least for now, according to City Manager Roger LeDuc.
Based on comments they have heard from the community at recent public forums where the ordinance has been discussed, City officials say they have decided to monitor this summer's activity before moving forward with the proposal to prohibit youth under 17 from unsupervised activity throughout the City during designated time periods.
"We're going to have an educational summer versus an enforcement summer," said City staff attorney and Solicitor Richard Pearce.
Pearce said Aiken Public Safety will use this summer to collect statistical data on youth activity. There will also be more focus on existing youth programs and new ones, said LeDuc. He said the City has hired three new employees to help run summer programs.
Both LeDuc and Pearce acknowledged the weight local residents' input had on the City's decision to postpone bringing the ordinance back to Council.
Pearce said it was after Tuesday's meeting that officials decided to put the ordinance on hold. At Tuesday's forum, which was held at the H. Odell Weeks Activities Center, most people spoke against the proposal, some calling it unconstitutional, unfair to the kids that are not causing problems and an overreaction by City officials.
City officials have said the Youth Protection Ordinance is an effort to combat rising youth violence and gang activity in Aiken. As an alternative, many against the ordinance have suggested the City create and strengthen community programs so kids will not want to hang out on the streets.
Since the lines of communication have opened on the issue, LeDuc said he's eager to see how the summer turns out.
"We're going to have a lot of programs going on," said LeDuc. "We're going to see if people are willing to come out and help us"
The ordinance was to go back to Council on June 9, however LeDuc said it won't go back until late summer/early fall.
Contact April Bailey at abailey@aikenstandard.com

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3 comment(s) on this story

The Truth : 5/20/2008

this saddens me. Curfews like this are affective in Augusta and around the nation. why can't people see this is simple to help? Honestly, there's nothing good to get into at 3am. this curfew would get our youth out of the street and into bed, so they don't sleep through they're classes in the daytime. The extrememly vocal minority has turned this ordinance into a battle of screaming. The truth is, this curfew will only help the city in the long run.

concerned citizen

Excellent. : 5/17/2008

I am a teenager and would have been affected by the curfew, so obviously I am slightly biased, but I think this is absolutely great. The problem with this curfew was that it was designed to prevent illegal activity in a relatively small section of the teenage population. Moreover, it was this section that would have ignored the curfew anyway, and unless the Council had some serious punishments lined up for violators, the curfew would have been largely ineffective. Now the majority of the younger population is still free to enjoy our summers without breaking any laws.

A. Berning

Democracy at work! : 5/16/2008

Thank you "City Officials" for hearing the citizens! There were many citizens of all ages at this last meeting. We should be especially proud of our youth that attended and were very passionate about their views of the ordinance. These young people are the future and some of them may very well be on the City Council one day. I urge you all to be more involved with out community. That includes knowing where your children are, what they are doing and who they are with at all times. Keep us informed so we can be a part of "keeping our Aiken safe for all!"

M. Swindler

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