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County curfew needs help from legislature

By Bob Watson bwatson@newstribune.com 

State representative has agreed to assist

Published: Friday, March 27, 2009 2:29 PM CDT
Unless the Missouri Legislature helps, there can be no curfew for unincorporated areas of Cole County, Western District Commissioner Chris Wrigley told colleagues Thursday.

Westview Heights residents earlier this month asked commissioners to impose a countywide curfew for teens.

Margaret Thoenen, president of the Westview Heights Neighborhood Watch, told commissioners on March 9 they're noticing more teens running around the area and doing things like vandalizing mailboxes, after Jefferson City's curfew kicks in at 12:30 a.m.

State Rep. Mark Bruns, R-Wardsville, has agreed to work on the change this spring.

“It would be dead as a stand-alone bill but, as an amendment to an existing bill, it does still stand a chance,” Bruns said Thursday afternoon.

Subscribers: Read expanded coverage in our e-Edition. See Friday's FRONT PAGE.





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Boomer wrote on Apr 7, 2009 3:34 PM:

" Well Bosco I think we're in agreement. Both places are far from perfect. All I'm trying to get across is who has the problem? WVH that's who! So why should an unincorporated area be able to demand a curfew from the entire county? It's cart Blanche for the road dogs to stop everyone moving after 12:30 county wide. Well at least MSHP, CCSD won't need any more of those silly sobriety check points. it'll be an age limit "check" in every car county wide. Does that sound reasonable to you?
I'll vote for it when it includes planning, zoning, animal control, add a burn ban,and no junk cars, county wide........ "

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ndnlvngcherokee wrote on Apr 7, 2009 11:56 AM:

" bubbajohn I am almost certain I know you as I believe your daughter was a friend of my son but he didnt get to come over much in that area because of the same kids you are talking about. Sounds like the same girls who were in on the little fight against my son with the boy who broke his nose. Those kids get away with everything and the parents truelly dont care. John keep your head up and know that the values you are teaching your children are good ones...God Bless "

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boscoe wrote on Apr 7, 2009 11:51 AM:

" Drug houses are also OK in the city. Just don't park overtime in front of them or you'll get a ticket. "

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boscoe wrote on Apr 7, 2009 11:50 AM:

" However, if your city house partially burns, you can leave the structure standing for years. Also, half-boarded up windows and vacant property is no problem in the city, as well as tall weeds that are never mowed. If you own property downtown, the city will rebuild your sidewalks and plant trees and flowers for you for free. Just do not try to expand your business in the city, or try to run a disgusting evil business like a tatoo shop or sell adult books. Also, you'll have to grease the various commissions and boards to get your signs approved and get your fences and planned variances approved. It helps to have certain last name or live in a certain neighborhood, though. "

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ndnlvngcherokee wrote on Apr 7, 2009 11:49 AM:

" Yes I spoke with the parents...yes the cops know about the homes with the drugs...those homes have been in the paper recently within the last few months...and yes talked alot with Cole County...got sick of it moved out of that area... "

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boomer wrote on Apr 7, 2009 9:45 AM:

" Sure you'll have to give up letting your dogs run wild, and you won't be able to burn any more, and you will have to have two barrels per household for disposal / recycling no matter how many people live there. (You'll pay what ever the City tell you to.)

No you won't be allowed to park unlicensed vehicles or ones that quit running in the front or back yard for storage.

Yes you'll have to keep you yard cut and can't pile up trash bags till later for disposal.

But you'll get real Cops, and Detectives, a full time Fire Department,

and planning and Code enforcement. "

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boomer wrote on Apr 7, 2009 9:23 AM:

" Yes sir, if WVH was in the City, special interest wouldn't be a problem. Check out the stop sigh near the mayors home. The neighbors wanted their kids safe while they play in the street, so a Stop sign went up in-spite of findings of other advisory groups. Same kind of thing near the Mall. Too many pesky people using the street in Shell Ridge, and the results more Stop Signs. A Kid was led through smoke by Lawyer Dad, (got poison ivy from it) result, City burn ban! I'm telling you, your problems would be over if you had JC's government handling everything for you. "

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boomer wrote on Apr 7, 2009 8:50 AM:

" So to recap the issue. WVH has a problem with the Kids out there. WVH doesn't want to be annexed into the city because they'd have to follow City codes, laws, BUT,.... WVH wants the entire county, Lohman, Saint Martins, Russleville,Brazito,Hickory Hill, Taos, Wardsville and Jefferson City to have a curfew imposed on them?

Good Lord, am I the only one that thinks this is beyond ridiculous?

What about the 5 million dollar tax just passed to create the huge slush fund for Cole County? (ambulance service) That huge wind-fall should allow CCSD more than enough money to handle any problems WVH has, or did the commissioners salaries go UP again? "

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boscoe wrote on Apr 7, 2009 8:35 AM:

" Bubba, it sounds like you are dealing with people who should not be breeding. No wonder Westview has such a lousy reputation- it has become a dumping ground for the worst of Missouri.

I kind of like Midline's thought about tasering the kids, but it needs to be done for an extended period of time, not just a few minutes. "

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JCpatriot wrote on Apr 7, 2009 8:22 AM:

" Solution: Make the parents pay huge fines for past curfew hrs, and if guilty pay trespassing, vandalism fines too. Watch how fast most of these kids will be at home locked in there bedroom on friday & saturday nites... "

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bubbajohn wrote on Apr 6, 2009 9:44 PM:

" to back off, and trust me when I say, if my daughter flirted with him, I would deal with it. Told them to back off and I went home. I sat on the porch because I knew they would be coming down the road, and guess what, they were and brought one of the moms, let me say it was like talking to a 12 year old. So the parents that I have talked too, don't care, don't listen, don't believe, etc. I will be the first to say that i KNOW my kids are not perfect, but these parents need to step up, stop trying to be "cool" and be parents. Umm, I guess a curfew won't help. "

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bubbajohn wrote on Apr 6, 2009 9:39 PM:

" constantly harrassing my daughter, they think their children are perfect and refuse to listen to anything I had to say, in fact, one of the dads approached my daughter, swearing at her threatning to kick her a** so if that shows you what kind of people I am dealing with. I make my presence very well known, if they choose to stare my daughter down, bring it on, because I am right there. I believe in having my children fight their own battles, but this isn't a battle, it's a war!!! Had another gang of girls try to beat my daughter up for supposedly flirting with one of their boyfriends, and all I could say to the gang was "

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bubbajohn wrote on Apr 6, 2009 9:34 PM:

" to answer some questions, with the kids who had stolen my daughters iPod, I knew where one of them lived, the other kid I had to do some investigating i.e drive around the neighborhood until I found his car, I was told my the deputies that they could not give me the addresses, as I was figuring out what to say to the parents, I had received a call from Sheriff White saying that the boys had been arrested for breaking into a car, stealing a ladies purse and going to Wal-Mart where he seen them walk out with merchandise purchased with the stolen credit cards, so at the point, I figured that problem solved. As far as these girls that are "

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midline wrote on Apr 6, 2009 7:23 PM:

" I say set a curfew , catch em lock em for 48 hours, everytime. Taser em as well "

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redblack564 wrote on Apr 6, 2009 12:22 PM:

" I say make a mandatory sentence for teens that get in trouble. first offense maybe a slap on the wrist, but a second offense should be let's say a Mandatory 72 hrs in JAIL.not Juvy. let all these 13, 14 or 15 year olds get lined up, stripped down and checked. Then get shoes and clothes issued to them and put them in lockdown away from everyone, and see what their life will be like once they Turn 18. Also when a child is in the facility a BILL will be sent to the parents for cost incurred by the county while the child was in there and Garnished from their paychecks or welfare checks until it is paid for. "

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mariab wrote on Apr 6, 2009 12:11 PM:

" By the way, I have a problem with police officers who seem to try and sway residents from following through on an action.

For instance, even if a kid *is* going to get out of juvy the next day - by God, he was in the center for *one* day, and his parents had to get involved in some way to get him out. "

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mariab wrote on Apr 6, 2009 12:09 PM:

" With all due respect, NDN, I'm still unclear on if you (or Bubba) did actually talk to the parents of any of the kids who concerned you.

And if you *know* a parent is drinking/drugging with the kids in home, I'm wondering if he or she has been hotlined for child abuse/neglect.

I like your idea of neighbors sitting on their front porches to create a presence - that's addressing a problem straight on. "

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ndnlvngcherokee wrote on Apr 6, 2009 11:30 AM:

" This area is crazy and until everyone comes out and sits on their porches at night as a community to show strength that they wont put up with it it will keep going on. I think its time that the law be made that if your kids are doing this and you dont keep control of them then you as a parent must pay...maybe jail time for the parent. The issue is that most of the parents allowing their children to do this arent involved because they are either drunk or high themselves. Its time to step up and say enough is enough "

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ndnlvngcherokee wrote on Apr 6, 2009 11:29 AM:

" I can say this about WVH I am glad I moved from there. And to answer for Bubbajohn it wouldnt matter if you do talk to the parents. We had many issues while living out there. One included my son being hit on the property we were renting us calling the cops pointing out which child did this. Mind you my son was in our camper not standing out yelling anything to anyone. And Cole County told us they could only take the boy to Juvy where he would probably be out by the next day. Didnt matter that I wanted to press charges because he was a minor. There were 2 girls involved but because they didnt throw any punches nothing was done tothem. "

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boomer wrote on Apr 3, 2009 2:28 PM:

" Spawn and then "gone". What a world.. "

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boomer wrote on Apr 3, 2009 2:26 PM:

" Amen ODF! I say iIf you're mature enough to have them, you should have to look after them, at least until they are 18, then the prisons or what ever will arrange visitation for you if you want to bother to spend your precious time with them then. I't's only eighteen years parents, you can do it,... or at least you should be required to. Get government out of our homes. "

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ODF wrote on Apr 3, 2009 12:13 PM:

" That is exactly the point Travelin'....your MOM used to set your rules. Sadly, a lot of parents have checked out of their responsibility. It's time to put the "parent" back in parenting and time for the govt. to butt out.

Enacting a county wide curfew to address a few isolated problems, which largely exists because some parents don't want to do their job, is bad policy. "

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mariab wrote on Apr 3, 2009 12:13 PM:

" Bubbajohn - Have you already talked with any of the kids' parents (the kids you believe are stalking or otherwise intimidating your daughter)? "

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Travelin_Rose wrote on Apr 3, 2009 12:03 PM:

" I like the idea. As my Mom used to tell me when I was a teen, there is nothing you should be doing after midnight anyway so you need to be home. The unintended consequence of this curfew may be less unwanted teen pregnancies. "

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boomer wrote on Apr 3, 2009 11:30 AM:

" A lot of people complain about the terrible two's. Those are a holiday compared to the tumultuous teens! I've been there and done that too. I don't know all the answers, but turning them out to do their own thing all night isn't right for them or anyone else living there. I do think lousy parents often spawn lousy kids. The mall decided the kids weren't going to run wild there, maybe the parents need to decide the kids aren't going to run wild out in WVH any more... "

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ODF wrote on Apr 3, 2009 11:20 AM:

" Some may think that is unrealistic.....but as my grandpa used to say "only thing that happens after midnight is trouble". I hated having to be home that early, but honestly, my grandpa was right. There wasn't anything going on that I needed to out for and most folks that were out late were up to trouble. "

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ODF wrote on Apr 3, 2009 11:19 AM:

" boomer - I agree...except I'd like to see a PARENT require the handcuffing or take other punishment before it got to the level of a judge. But you know what would happen, the child would cry "wolf", the police, the courts and DFS would then be involved and ultimately the PARENT would end up being the bad guy.

I grew up in a small town (3,000) and even once I turned 16, my parent-imposed curfew was around 11:00 depending on sports, etc.. Only time I was ever allowed to be out past 1:00am (with a few exceptions) was my senior year when we had prom or other things and we usually ended up having a campout somewhere. "

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boomer wrote on Apr 3, 2009 11:12 AM:

" ODF you and I are on the exact same page. Removing the rights of law abiding people only restricts law abiding people. I'd love to see a judge order a trouble making kid handcuffed to their mom or dad (depending on sex) from 5:00 PM on Friday until, 6:00 AM on Monday ever weekend for a month or two. I bet the parent would find it easier to control them then. IThe truth is those kids have parents, but the parents aren't doing their job, because they don't accept the responsibility of their kids. Change that and problem will be gone. The county doesn't need more laws because of that area, that area needs parents involved with their kids. "

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ODF wrote on Apr 3, 2009 10:44 AM:

" Enacting a county-wide ordinance to address the problems of one community is NOT the answer. WVH has been a pit for years and has become increasingly worse. Now that things are finally completely out of control, they want something done. Why didn't they address the problems a LONG time ago. Folks want to always say people are making mountains out of mole hills. Well guess what, if you took care of the problem when it was a mole hill, there wouldn't be a mountain to climb. "

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ODF wrote on Apr 3, 2009 10:40 AM:

" bubbajohn wrote on Mar 27, 2009 9:01 PM:

" As much as I would like to think that would make a difference, I don't think it would do a thing but provoke, LOL. "

Bingo!! Because kids have learned all they have to do is say "big, bad so-and-so did X to me" and YOU will find yourself in hot water. The kids will still be on the street, being stupid and then break into your house and steal your gun while you are in court defending yourself from baseless accusations. Our govt. has given kids the keys to run wild and they know it. Now officials seem surprised when there are issues and people want a curfew. "

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ODF wrote on Apr 3, 2009 10:34 AM:

" boomer - The more the state butts into the parenting of kids, the more parents check out on their responsibilities. I firmly believe that the social decline in this country is the govt's continued intrusion into areas of personal life that it has no business being in.

How many times do you see 14, 15, 16 year olds hurt in wrecks or invovled with criminal activity at 2 or 3 in the morning? WTH are the kids doing out at that time of night and where are the parents!!

I disagree with the enactment and principle of curfews, but if parents won't parent, then something has to be done. "

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stop wrote on Apr 3, 2009 10:32 AM:

" We dont need a curfew, NO more BS laws to control our lives. We have laws to take care of anything these kids do. A curfew would be just another law for them to break. How about just enforcing the laws we have.
The only kids that will abide by the curfew are the ones that already obey the laws now.

Will we ever stop socialism. "

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boomer wrote on Apr 3, 2009 8:23 AM:

" Let's just make it a state law ,.... everyone off the roads all through the state at 12:30 because WVH can't / won't parent their kids. Yeah that's reasonable..... LOL Roll up the sidewalks,... Oh wait you don't have any do you? "

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boomer wrote on Apr 3, 2009 8:18 AM:

" Seems to me West View Heights wants it both ways. They don't want to be "forced to meet city codes, or have to obey city laws", but can't manage the problem kids out there. (Of course the problems are all coming from JC.)

They want the entire county to pass a curfew that will give the cops the right to stop every car after 12:30 anywhere in the county because of their problem! Really? How nice! I bet Mr White loves that idea too. Since when is WVH in charge of the entire county? OBTW JC is in Cole County, so this impacts it too "

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alwayzalady wrote on Apr 2, 2009 10:03 PM:

" Bubbajohn's problems is why there must be something done about juveniles that are wild and free in this neighborhood. These kids are gang stalking his children. They are not wanna be's. The parents should teach the children that the streets are not a place for entertainment and that the children should go directly to their needed destination without cooling their hotties for attention. "

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boscoe wrote on Apr 2, 2009 2:19 PM:

" They need some building and nuisance codes and soem law enforcement.

Property values in westview are low low low due to all the crime and riff-raff. "

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cinnamon wrote on Apr 2, 2009 1:16 PM:

" Westview Heights has a Neighborhood Watch??????? "

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go4it2 wrote on Mar 31, 2009 8:15 PM:

" Remember the commerical " DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR KIDS ARE?" "

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Alwayzalady wrote on Mar 29, 2009 10:47 AM:

" A special thanks should be extended to State Rep. Mark Bruns, R-Wardsville, for stepping up to bat for the residents of Westview. A good elected offical can move mountains. Again Thanks Rep. Bruns. "

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PBRMAN wrote on Mar 28, 2009 7:25 AM:

" What they are not telling you is that the commission could have gone either way. There are other counties just like Cole "JUST LIKE COLE" that have curfews'. Once again Wrigley and the commission wimped out and bailed on this community. It amazes me how blind the west side of cole is by voting Wrigley in once again. Why do you in the county think the jail project is 1. Over Budget, 2. Almost over a year behind schedule?? One answer Wrigley! Changing the plans weekly. But He does have new furniture and employee posistion in the chambers... Money they took from the Law Enforcement Tax! "

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bubbajohn wrote on Mar 27, 2009 9:01 PM:

" Funny you mention that tracey, the same thought has ran through my mind and out of mouth numerous times. LOL As much as I would like to think that would make a difference, I don't think it would do a thing but provoke, LOL. "

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boscoe wrote on Mar 27, 2009 8:22 PM:

" Westview needs to voluntearily annex if they want any chance of getting their mess cleaned up.

A curfew at night when there are only a couple of volunteer deputies on duty for the entire county won't do a thing. "

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traceyt wrote on Mar 27, 2009 7:37 PM:

" Bubba, here's what you need to do. Get yourself a shotgun and a lawn chair. Start sitting out on your front porch with your shotgun across your lap and just watch the kids hanging out while you drink soda. I bet they would find a new block to hang out on pretty fast, LOL. "

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bubbajohn wrote on Mar 27, 2009 3:29 PM:

" most of them have younger siblings that are learning the tricks of the trade. Bravo to the parents that want to teach our youth! Too bad it's teaching them a life of crime instead of some values and morals. Not saying all the parents are bad, or all the kids. Most of the good kids are locked inside their houses complaining to the good parents that they are bored- LOL something I hear all the time. I just say, well, your not in jail, doing drugs or pregnant! It's funny because just a few months ago, her friend was allowed to come and go as she pleased, and guess what- she's pregnant now! "

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bubbajohn wrote on Mar 27, 2009 3:26 PM:

" Being a parent, I know my kids are not perfect but I keep a close eye on what they are doing, the friends they hang out with, what they are wearing, etc. I guess out of sight is out of mind is how the majority of the parents feel otherwise, their children would not be acting this way time and time again. It is a shame, this is our first house, and I have to lock down the hatches, can't have the windows open, leave the front door open or anything because of these ruthless, disrespectful, criminals in the making. Each and everyone I guarantee will end up in jail or prison in the next couple years. But of course, "

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bubbajohn wrote on Mar 27, 2009 3:21 PM:

" attract the hoodlums. But now, the hoodlums have stalked my daughter, calls her names when she is sitting on our front porch and will sit across the street directly in front of our house, just waiting. And these kids are in 6th and 7th grade. Last weekend, 4 oclock in the afternoon, bunch of boys and girls were out in the middle of street, boys dropping their pants, screaming out profanities and acting completly disrespectful. WHERE ARE THEIR PARENTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "

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bubbajohn wrote on Mar 27, 2009 3:18 PM:

" I am glad to hear that they have agreed to assist, but 12:30? I live in WVH and personally I think that is too late! But if it was up to me, as soon as the sun goes down, curfew kicks in- guess it is a good thing I don't have any choice in the matter but I will say this, the kids around here are ruthless, which is why my 14 and 10 year old daughters don't go out of the yard and are in the house BEFORE the sun goes down. These kids around here start trouble from the time they step outside, light or dark! We have had to put up our basketball net since that seemed to.... "

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