Curfew Opposition Carries Day at Town Hall

A proposal for a Montgomery County curfew for teens isn’t just being opposed by the kids it will affect.

A Nov. 2 town hall meeting for Wheaton and the northern Silver Spring area was the final opportunity for the youth curfew opposition to make its voice heard before the Montgomery County Council’s Public Safety Committee met on Nov. 3 for its second work session on the curfew bill. The committee did not take a vote of recommendation.

At the town hall meeting, the first question about the proposed teen curfew came from someone who lives in the retirement community Leisure World.

Paul Bessel asked the six Montgomery County Council members present whether they would consider an alternative to restricting where youth 17 and younger could go from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and from midnight to 5 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

Bessel said that he and his neighbors “think that the youth curfew is not a good idea. It defines people by who they are instead of what they do.”

Halfway through Councilmember Phil Andrews’ response,, where the town meeting was held, lost power and the television cameras and microphone system shut off.

Amid jokes about Pepco, moderator Susan Kennedy asked the audience how many people had questions about the curfew. About seven people raised their hands.

“Not as many as I thought,” Kennedy said.

After the power came back on a few minutes later, Andrews (D-Dist. 3) repeated that he agreed that the curfew is unjustified, considering that crime during the proposed curfew hours has gone down. Andrews, who chairs the Public Safety Committee, then presented the alternative of a “loitering and prowling” law that he and Councilmember George Leventhal (D-At large) introduced October 25.

Other councilmembers jumped in on what has been a hot topic ever since County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) proposed the bill back in July.

• Leventhal noted that there had been concern prior to the, but that crime had not gone up in that area.
• Marc Elrich (D-At large) said that he has concerns about both bills--the curfew and the loitering law--because they open the way for discriminatory actions by the police.
• Nancy Navarro (D-Dist. 4) emphasized the council’s resolution for positive youth activities.

After a few questions from the audience about redevelopment, Leah Muskin-Pierret stood up to again urge the council to oppose the curfew. Muskin-Pierret, 17, co-founded Stand Up to the Montgomery County Curfew and spoke against the curfew at the

Muskin-Pierret reminded the council that while the police “seem rather split” about whether to support the curfew, the Montgomery County Council of Parent-Teacher Associations (MCCPTA) issued a statement against it last week.  

Muskin-Pierret asked for a response from a pro-curfew councilmember, and Craig Rice (D-Dist. 2) answered her by saying that the curfew is just one piece of a “multi-tiered approach.” He admitted that it is “restrictive” but called it “a protective measure.”

“I still don’t understand why a 13-year-old needs to be out at 2 a.m.,” said Rice, who has three children, ages 5, 9 and 16.

Later in the town hall meeting, Wheaton resident Bill Marth prefaced his question about panhandling by noting that his own children grew up with curfews. “I set them, I enforced them -- they worked very well,” he said.

After the town hall ended, Muskin-Pierret said that although she is “not a huge fan” of Andrews’ plan, she sees it as “less aggressive.”

“I’m really liking where Navarro’s going” with positive youth programs, she added.

No one at the town hall except for Rice openly expressed support for the curfew.

Alex Koroknay-Palicz, director of the National Youth Rights Association, did not ask a question, but sat near the front of the audience with two students wearing anti-curfew badges.

“I would urge the council to vote against a solution that doesn’t work for a problem that doesn’t exist,” said Koroknay-Palicz, who submitted testimony for the July 26 public hearing.

The county will hold a public hearing about the proposed loitering law, Bill 35-11, on Nov. 15.