At the Oct. 22 City Council meeting, Jersey Village council members approved an amendment to the city's curfew ordinance, establishing a daytime curfew for students 17 years and younger from 9 a.m.–2:30 p.m. Monday–Friday while school is in session.

"The daytime curfew is a result of our having to counter the increasing number of juveniles walking the streets," said Detective Sergeant C.J. Harper. "The issue in the past has been that we simply couldn't do anything about it. A remarkable number of [students] we are encountering don't live in Jersey Village—students who simply walk away from high schools who don't live here. This allows us to take those students and return them back into the custody of the school."

The amendment has been tailored to coincide with different school schedules and student needs. Several Cy–Fair schools practice block scheduling and release students earlier than 2:30 p.m. Other students are home-schooled or engage in out-of-school activities or have employment responsibilities. These conditions were considered and are accepted as provisions of the ordinance, Harper said.

The original curfew ordinance was approved in November 1995 and sets curfew hours from 11 p.m.–6 a.m. Sunday–Thursday and midnight–6 a.m. Friday and Saturday. However, many residents and city officials have expressed the need for adding a daytime curfew due to a rising number of truancy cases.

"Thinking back over the last couple months, I can think of at least three incidents involving specifically juveniles," said Mike Castro, city manager. "[This] increase in juvenile crime is not by accident. Criminals have gotten smart and they know that if an adult gets caught in a crime, then that's hard time. The incentive is to engage and enlist juveniles in criminal activity. The criminals have adapted and I think we need to adapt."

The penalty for not following the curfew is a class C citation ranging from $50–$500 for each day the provision is violated. The new ordinance holds businesses responsible as well by penalizing those who allow students under 17 to patronize their establishment during curfew hours.

"The [aspect] that makes me very confident in this [amendment] is it does give the police officers the discretion to actually speak directly with the juvenile in question and ascertain what their business is and make a spot decision whether it is something that needs to be pursued," said council member Justin Ray.

The amendment to the city's curfew ordinance was passed, approved and adopted as of Oct. 22 and is currently in effect.