Lexington council members will study the city’s 21-year-old curfew law in the months ahead.
Council member Fred Brown has called for an update to the ordinance that requires anyone under 18 to be in by 1:00 a.m. Saturday and Sunday and 11:00 p.m. the rest of the week. There are a number of exceptions.
Police Chief Mark Barnard says parents may not be aware their children are out after curfew. The chief says that’s a defense of a curfew violation,“So the officer will have to use the discretion of whether to cite the parent or the guardian under the ordinance or whether to turn the child back over to the parent or guardian.”
Barnard says it’s important to identify young people with at-risk behavior and use social services to make sure they remain in a safe environment. Councilman Brown says committee review of the curfew law may not occur until early next year.?
