| From the HSLDA E-lert Service: |
< BACK TO ARCHIVE |
| Date: From: Subject: | 3/4/2009 1:38:20 PM Home School Legal Defense Association Texas--Proposed Daytime Curfew a Threat to Freedom |
|
====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== Texas--Proposed Daytime Curfew a Threat to Freedom Dear HSLDA Members and Friends: We understand the Dallas City Council is contemplating a proposed daytime curfew. We believe that if many homeschoolers call the Council this week, it may deter this curfew from becoming a reality. We have been able to stop other curfews in Texas by urging local residents to express their opposition to such restrictive legislation. Daytime curfews are largely ineffective, and we believe they are also unconstitutional. Homeschoolers who are outside their homes or traveling to classes, for example, could be stopped and harassed by truant officers and law enforcement. Therefore, we recommend that you take a few minutes and contact the Dallas City Council to ask them to oppose a daytime curfew. ACTION REQUESTED: Please call the Dallas City Council members. Call the first seven members if your last names begin with the letters A-L. Call the last eight members if your last names begin with the letters M-Z. Please tell the Council members the following in your own words: "We do not need a daytime curfew. Curfews are ineffective and harmful to our freedom. Please vote against any proposed daytime curfew." You do not need to identify yourself a homeschooler. Mayor Tom Lippert: Phone: 214-670-4054 Dr. Elba Garcia, Mayor Pro Tem, District 1: Phone: 214-670-4052 Pauline Medrano, District 2: Phone: 214-670-4048 David A. Neumann, District 3: Phone: (214) 670-0776 Dwaine Caraway, Deputy Mayor Pro Tem, District 4: Phone: (214) 670-0781 Vonciel Jones Hill, District 5: Phone: (214) 670-0777 Steve Salazar, District 6: Phone: (214) 670-4199 Carolyn R. Davis, District 7: Phone: (214) 670-4689 Tennell Atkins, District 8: Phone: 214-670-4066 Sheffie Kadane, District 9: Phone: 214-670-4069 Jerry R. Allen, District 10: Phone: 214-670-4068 Linda Koop, District 11: Phone: 214-670-7817 Ron Natinsky, District 12: Phone: 214-670-4067 Mitchell Rasansky, District 13: Phone: 214-670-3816 Angela Hunt, District 14: Phone: (214) 670-5415 BACKGROUND: Daytime curfews violate a minor's fundamental constitutional right to freedom of movement on the public streets, highways and areas of the city without being subjected to prior governmental restraint--as guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment. Daytime curfews violate the fundamental legal principle of the presumption of innocence. This presumption is protected by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth and Fifth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Daytime curfews result in violations of the minors' Fourth Amendment rights to be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures. A policeman should not stop and question anyone unless there are actual facts that make it reasonable to suspect that a crime has occurred. If a policeman stops and questions a person without such facts, it is a violation of the citizen's rights under the Fourth Amendment. Daytime curfews interfere with the parents' fundamental right to direct the upbringing and education of their children, especially for parents with children in small private schools who often work outside the classroom. Daytime curfews are, in essence, beefed-up truancy ordinances. All states have already addressed the area of truancy in a comprehensive way. There is no need for new laws addressing the issue of truancy. The present laws addressing minors simply need to be enforced. Daytime curfews will result in selective enforcement. Since officers will not be stopping every juvenile during school hours to check their ID, they will be selective. This opens up the extremely dangerous potential for unequal treatment of minors based upon race, appearance, dress, etc. This type of ordinance will simply divert attention from real crime prevention programs and interfere with effective police work. There is no evidence that daytime curfews significantly reduce juvenile crime during curfew hours. Statistics demonstrate that there is very little juvenile crime during these hours even when there is no daytime curfew. Additionally, the serious juvenile law-breaker will not be deterred by the daytime curfew. However, hundreds, if not thousands of innocent minors will suffer the inconvenience of unwarranted stops, detentions and harassment, not to mention the added cost for taxpayers for the enforcement of the curfew. Daytime curfews dangerously train young citizens to accept, as normal, constraints that are inconsistent with the freedom they should be educated to enjoy and use responsibly in their adult years. Daytime curfews send a message to self-disciplined and responsible young people that the community makes no distinction between them and irresponsible adults who abuse freedom in ways detrimental to the community. Daytime curfews will likely result in registration of privately educated students with police departments with the attendant issuance of ID cards and badges. For a legal memorandum on the unconstitutionality of daytime curfews, which can be given to Council members, please see our analysis of this issue at http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=2102. Sincerely, Christopher J. Klicka HSLDA Senior Counsel ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> "I saved my entire membership fee with one discount" "We've been a Liberty Mutual customer for over 12 years. We called and asked about our HSLDA member discount and they lowered our premium by approx $95 per year...coincidentally the same amount as our HSLDA annual membership fee. Thought you'd want to know!!'" More reasons to join HSLDA... http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=1107 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ====================================================================== The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. Box 3000 Purcellville, Virginia 20134 Phone: (540) 338-5600 Fax: (540) 338-2733 Email: info@hslda.org Web: http://www.hslda.org ---------------------------------------------------------------------- How To Subscribe: - Subscribe to the HSLDA E-lert Service at our website: https://secure.hslda.org/hslda/elert/account.asp?Process=Subscribe - Or send an email with name and complete mailing address to: subscribe@hslda.org ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscription Information: - You subscribed to the HSLDA E-lert Service as: ##ToAddress## - To unsubscribe from the HSLDA E-lert Service send an email from the email address you want to unsubscribe to: unsubscribe@hslda.org - To change your email address or make other changes to your subscription, visit the HSLDA E-lert Service account web page at: https://secure.hslda.org/hslda/elert/account.asp ---------------------------------------------------------------------- POSTMASTERS: This message is being sent to the most recent address we have for our subscribers. If this is an invalid email address or you have other problems, please reply to webmaster@hslda.org. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DISCLAIMER: This is considered a private and confidential message from HSLDA to its bonafide HSLDA E-lert Service subscribers. HSLDA cannot attest to the authenticity of copies posted, forwarded, or sent by any party other than HSLDA. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: Please do not reply or otherwise use this email address; hslda@hslda.org is for broadcast purposes only and is not intended to receive incoming messages. We cannot reply to any email sent to this address. If you have comments or questions, please send email to info@hslda.org or call HSLDA at 540-338-5600. HSLDA members can also email staff directly through the Members website at http://members.hslda.org/contact.asp. Thank you for your cooperation. ====================================================================== | |
