[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Town of
Smithsburg 2-3-2004 as Ch. 14, Title 5, of the 2004 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Loitering — See Ch. 246.
In this chapter, the following words have the meanings indicated,
unless the context of their use indicates otherwise:
An unforeseen circumstance or combination of circumstances
or the resulting state that calls for immediate action. The term includes,
but is not limited to, a fire, a natural disaster, or automobile accident,
or any situation requiring immediate action to prevent serious bodily
injury or loss of life.
Any privately owned place of business operated for a profit
to which the public is invited, including but not limited to any place
of amusement or entertainment.
Consciously, willfully, or intentionally, and includes knowledge
that a parent or guardian may reasonably be expected to have concerning
the whereabouts of a minor in his care and custody.
Any unemancipated person under 17 years of age.
Any individual, firm, association, partnership, or corporation
operating, managing, or conducting any establishment open to the public.
The term includes the members or partners of an association or partnership
and the officers of a corporation.
A person who is:
Any place to which the public or a substantial group of the
public has access and includes but is not limited to:
Streets, highways, alleys, sidewalks and any public right-of-way
of a street or highway; and
The common areas of transport facilities, schools, hospitals,
apartment houses, office buildings, shopping centers, parks, playgrounds,
parking lots, theaters, restaurants, bowling alleys, taverns, cafes,
arcades, and shops.
It shall be unlawful for a minor to remain in any public place
or on the premises of any establishment within the Town of Smithsburg
during curfew hours.
The curfew for juveniles imposed in this chapter shall not apply
when the minor is:
A.
Accompanied by the minor's parent or guardian;
B.
On an errand at the direction of the minor's parent or guardian,
without any detour or stop, until the hour of 12:30 a.m.;
C.
Accompanied by a person at least 18 years of age and authorized by
the minor's parent or guardian to have temporary care or custody
of the minor for a designated period of time within a specified area;
D.
With consent of the minor's parent or guardian, involved in
interstate travel through the Town of Smithsburg or beginning or ending
in the Town of Smithsburg;
E.
Engaged in a legal employment activity, or going to or returning
home from a legal employment activity, without any detour or stop;
F.
Involved in an emergency;
G.
On the property where the minor resides or on the sidewalk abutting
the minor's residence or abutting the residence of a next-door
neighbor, if the adult resident of that property has given permission
for the minor's presence;
H.
Attending or returning directly home from, without any detour or
stop and within one hour of the end of:
I.
Exercising First Amendment rights protected by the United States
Constitution, such as the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech,
and the right of assembly, by first delivering to the Chief of Smithsburg
Police Department a written communication which:
J.
Remaining in a public place in a case of reasonable necessity if
the minor's parent or guardian has communicated to the Chief
of the Smithsburg Police Department facts:
It shall be unlawful for a parent or guardian of a minor to
knowingly permit, or by insufficient control allow, the minor to remain
in any public place or on the premises of any establishment within
the Town of Smithsburg during curfew hours.
A.
It shall be unlawful for the owner, operator, or any employee of
an establishment to knowingly allow a minor to remain upon the premises
of the establishment during curfew hours.
B.
An owner, operator, or any employee of an establishment is not in
violation of this chapter if the owner, operator, or employee promptly
notified the Town's Police Department that a minor was present
on the premises of the establishment during curfew hours and refused
to leave.
A.
If a police officer reasonably believes that a minor is in a public place in violation of § 160-2, the officer shall notify the minor that he or she is in violation of this chapter and shall require the minor to tell the officer his or her name, address, telephone number, date of birth and how to contact the minor's parent or guardian.
B.
The police officer may issue the juvenile a written warning that the minor is in violation of this chapter and order the minor to promptly go home. The Chief of the Smithsburg Police Department shall give the minor's parent or guardian written notice of the violation pursuant to § 160-4.
C.
Smithsburg Police Department procedures may permit the police officer
to take the minor home, if appropriate under the circumstances.
D.
Notwithstanding Subsection B of this section, the police officer shall take the minor into custody and transport the minor to police headquarters when:
(1)
The minor has received one previous written warning for a violation
of this chapter;
(2)
The police officer has reasonable grounds to believe that the minor
has committed a delinquent act; or
(3)
Taking the minor into custody is otherwise authorized under § 3-814
of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article of the Annotated Code
of Maryland.
E.
When a minor is taken into custody pursuant to Subsection D of this section, the parent or guardian of the minor shall immediately be notified and required to come to the police headquarters to take custody of the minor. The police officer shall determine whether, consistent with constitutional safeguards, the minor or the parent or guardian, or both, are in violation of this chapter.
A.
Violation by parent or guardian.
(1)
If, after receiving a warning notice of a first violation by a minor, a parent or guardian violates § 160-4 in connection with a second violation by the minor, this shall be treated as a first offense by the parent or guardian and shall be a civil violation or infraction pursuant to the Town Code.
(2)
For the first offense by a parent or guardian, the fine shall be
$25. For each subsequent offense by a parent or guardian, the fine
shall be increased by an additional $5, up to a maximum fine of $100.
B.
Violation by operator.
(1)
If, after a warning notice, the operator of an establishment open to the public violates § 160-5 a second time, this shall be treated as a first offense by the operator and shall be a civil violation or infraction pursuant to the Town Code.
(2)
For the first offense by an operator, the fine shall be $25. For
each subsequent offense by an operator, the fine shall be increased
by an additional $5, up to a maximum fine of $100.
