[Adopted 2-5-2007 by Ord. No. 07-02]
The Council of the Township of Bloomfield finds that many minors are contributing to breaches of the public peace and the orderly running of our school system. Accordingly, this article is declared necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health, safety and welfare of the people of the Township of Bloomfield and the Bloomfield School District. It is intended to address situations where parents have failed to act responsibly and reasonably in the supervision of minors, which failure causes detriment to the general public and the Bloomfield School District.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
DELINQUENT ACTS
Those acts which violate the laws of the United States, the laws of the State of New Jersey or ordinances of the Township of Bloomfield, or those acts which would cause or tend to cause the minor to come under the jurisdiction of the Municipal Court or Superior Court, but does not include traffic violations.
ILLEGAL DRUGS
Controlled dangerous substances obtained without a legal prescription, as defined in N.J.S.A. 24:21-2 and N.J.S.A. 2C:35-2.
MINOR
Any person under the age of 18 residing with a parent or legal guardian.
PARENT
Mother, father, legal guardian or any other person having the care or custody of a minor or any person acting in parents' stead who have custody or control of the minor.
PROPERTY DAMAGE
The purposeful and knowing damaging or destroying of property.
SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Bloomfield School District.
TOWNSHIP
The Township of Bloomfield.
VIOLENT BEHAVIOR
Any type of behavior likely to result in inflicting bodily injury to another.
WEAPONS
Anything readily capable of lethal use or of inflicting serious bodily injury. The terms includes, but is not limited to, all 1) firearms, even though not loaded or lacking a clip or other component to render them immediately operable; 2) components which can be readily assembled into a weapon; 3) gravity knives, switchblade knives, daggers, dirks, stilettos, or other dangerous knives, billies, blackjacks, bludgeons, metal knuckles, sandclubs, slingshots, cest or similar leather bands studded with metal filings or razor blades imbedded in wood; and 4) stun guns; and any weapon or other device which projects, releases, or emits tear gas or any other substance intended to produce temporary physical discomfort or permanent injury through being vaporized or otherwise dispensed in the air.
A. 
It is the continuous duty of a parent to exercise control so as to prevent their minor from committing any delinquent act.
B. 
Included (without limitation) in this continuous duty of reasonable parental control are the following parental duties.
(1) 
To keep illegal drugs or illegal weapons out of the home and legal weapons locked in placed that are inaccessible to the minor.
(2) 
To require the minor to attend regular school sessions and to forbid the minor from being absent from class without parental or school permission.
(3) 
To arrange proper supervision for the minor when the parent must be absent.
(4) 
To take the necessary precautions to prevent the minor from maliciously or willfully destroying real or personal property, which belongs to, the Township of Bloomfield or the Bloomfield School District, or which is located in the Township of Bloomfield.
(5) 
To forbid the minor from keeping stolen property, illegally possessed weapons or illegal drugs or associating with known juvenile delinquents, and to seek help from appropriate governmental authorities or private agencies in handling or controlling the minor when necessary.
(6) 
To take the necessary precautions to prevent the minor from engaging in violent behavior.
Whenever a minor is arrested or detained for the commission of any delinquent act within the Township of Bloomfield or the Bloomfield School District, the parent of the minor shall be immediately notified by the Bloomfield Police Department advising the parent of such arrest or detention, the reason therefore, and the parent's responsibility under this article.
A. 
No parent of any minor shall fail to exercise reasonable parental control over such minor and adjudication that a minor has committed a delinquent act shall be evidence that the minor's parent failed to exercise reasonable parental control.
B. 
The parent of the minor who committed a delinquent act shall be held civilly responsible for the damages caused by the commission of the delinquent act.
C. 
Upon the first conviction of a violation of this article, parents shall be subject to a fine of not less than $75, nor more than $100.
D. 
Upon the second conviction of a violation of this article, parents shall be subject to a fine of not less than $100, nor more than $500, and in addition shall be sentenced to probation with the condition that the parent participate in, through completion, a court-approved, community-based treatment program (such as parenting skills, family services, employment and training) or, at the discretion of the Court, imprisonment for a period of not more than 30 days.
E. 
Upon a third or subsequent violation and conviction, the parent shall be subject to a fine of not less than $200, nor more than $500, and, at the discretion of the Court, imprisonment for a period of up to 90 days.