Curfew for young people in Delaware receives mixed reviews

Parents comment on the proposal for a curfew

Parents like Melissa Flores have expressed concern about how the new rules could affect their children who play school sports or have part-time jobs.

“I don't know. It might help, but if something has to happen, it has to happen,” the mother of three told WHYY News while walking with her six-year-old son near Jay Nests Park early one afternoon.

“I guess your kids might be safe, but what if it's a soccer game? What if they want to go to the soccer game? Or you're 16 but you have a job and don't get off until 11pm? Is that OK?” she added.

Flores said the move could place a greater burden on parents and guardians.

“Sometimes when you put more rules on top of the rules, and more rules, there are people who just want to break the rules,” she said.

Young people are exempt from the curfew if they meet one of the following criteria:

• Accompanied by parents or an authorized adult.
• Dealing with an emergency.
• Exercise their rights under the First Amendment to the Constitution.
• Straight back home.
• Need for employment

To be exempt from the curfew, parents or guardians must fill out an authorization form giving the child permission and adding him or her to the authority's database.

Flores, who lives on North Front Street, wonders why the focus is on curbing youth behavior rather than addressing problems like homelessness or drug problems.

“Why don't we take the kids to some kind of rehabilitation center instead of regulating them, because they obviously need it,” she said. “On North Front Street, from Family Dollar to Royal Farms, they're always hanging out there.”

Jalisa Brim, originally from Salisbury, Maryland, moved to Seaford over a year ago. As a mother of three teenagers, she supports the curfew and points out that she already enforces one at home.

“I'm for a curfew for teenagers,” Brim said. “I have teenagers and they have a curfew, so in my own house a curfew because it's dangerous and you don't want to have to deal with the things at night that you don't even want to do to your children.”

Violations of the curfew will result in fines that begin at $50 for the first violation and increase by $25 for each subsequent violation. Repeated violations may result in a review by the Family Court to determine underlying issues.

Although Brim has no concerns about the fines themselves, she expressed sympathy for families who may be struggling to keep their children under control, especially given the financial burden of inflation.

“The economy is already too tough for people like me,” she said. “So it's going to be pretty difficult to charge extra fees or pay extra money for your kids because some parents may not have their kids under control. I have my kids under control.”