Stupid Halloween Laws

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

I think it simply has to do with the costumes.

There are hundreds of people on the street. Dozens of them in the same costumes. Ghosts, witches, cats, firemen, etc.

If someone calls the police because of an incident with a green faced witch, how on earth are the police going to track that person down?

My guess is that they know how bad it could get and want to do whatever they can to avoid it.

So that means that the "law abiding" vandals will be out now between 5 - 7 to blend in with all the other ToTers and not later. The others will still go out later, disregard the law, and the police still won't know who they are.

 

[SHAYMARAYSMOM]

Yes, we've already discussed that. They were set up supposedly to curb violence and vandalism. While I recognize those as real problem, my point has been that I don't see how that course of action will actual solve the problem. They basically want to get the law-breakers off the streets earlier. But if they have no respect for the law in the first place, why would they obey the curfew law? So, what's the point of making the law in the first place?

And again, if they actually don't give out tickets than that makes the law null and void. People will know that the law isn't being enforced and just ignore. So again...what good does the law do?



It wasn't the police that made the rule; it was the municipal government. And I don't disagree with keeping young people safe; I just don't see how this set of rules does that.

If they are set up to curb trouble then they have to start some place. When you have kids running around in the dark and people driving it is not always a good mix.
Is this the first year they have these rules in place? If so maybe they will change things a little bit. But they must have felt the need to start some place.
Again if you banned with other and speak up maybe as a group you could come up with something else that works.
But I still agree with a time limit. I do not think kids need to be out for hours and hours.
But on a side note when my DD was younger and went trick or treating we only went out for about an hour.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

If they are set up to curb trouble then they have to start some place. When you have kids running around in the dark and people driving it is not always a good mix.
Is this the first year they have these rules in place? If so maybe they will change things a little bit. But they must have felt the need to start some place.
Again if you banned with other and speak up maybe as a group you could come up with something else that works.
But I still agree with a time limit. I do not think kids need to be out for hours and hours.
But on a side note when my DD was younger and went trick or treating we only went out for about an hour.

Well, since I live nowhere near that city, I'm not going to band together with anyone to change anything.

I think that there are lots of ways that you can stop youth from being violent and committing acts of vandalism. The thing is, that takes work and money and many cities, like Bathurst, aren't willing to invest in youth, unfortunately. So instead they pretend that they are doing something about the problem to appease the people by coming up with crazy laws that, at best, punish the innocent kids who just want to go out and have fun on Halloween and, at worst, do absolutely nothing if they aren't enforced. Meanwhile, what they are doing is actually counter-productive because when you take away positive activities from children, they will replace them with negative activities. Take away ToTing time from teens and they will find another way to spend the rest of the night, likely doing the very things the municipality was trying to avoid in the first place. They just won't be wearing costumes so that they can't be fined.

I think kids deserve longer than a couple of hours of trick or treating. After all, that basically is Halloween. Get all dressed up for a lousy hour or two? What's the point? Luckily my town agrees and encourages ToTing instead of coming up with crazy laws to restrict it.

 

[PaulaSB12]

It not a halloween law but an old british law about crhistmas thanks to Oliver Cromwell. It is still technically illegal to eat mince pies on christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[JimmyPicker]

So that means that the "law abiding" vandals will be out now between 5 - 7 to blend in with all the other ToTers and not later. The others will still go out later, disregard the law, and the police still won't know who they are.

The vandals will be out whatever time they wish, because they obviously are not law abiding. It will make it easier for the police to spot trouble makers if most people in costumes are off the street.

If a group of teens are out at 11pm in costumes, they may be up to no good. Or maybe not. The curfew gives the police a valid reason to stop them and talk to them and see if anything is fishy, and to see if their costumes match any reported activity.

I know you are against the timed trick or treating. I get that. I don't like it either and would prefer that it didn't exist.

I just feel like there are valid reasons to have it that way.

I guess what I'm saying is that sometimes, you have to look at the other side of the coin. You can't get the whole picture by just looking at one side. You have to flip it over and look at both sides.

That's what I try to do. Look at both sides.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

And like I said, I can understand the reasons that they did it. I've flipped over the coin so to speak. But they still don't make sense to me in terms of outcome. There was the same amount of Halloween mistif reported from last night in our province as in years past so I'm not seeing how it worked out. And guess what, next Friday night in Bathurst they will have the same problems with violence and vandalism! Clearly ToTing past 7pm on Halloween is not the problem in that city.

 

[SHAYMARAYSMOM]

Well, since I live nowhere near that city, I'm not going to band together with anyone to change anything.

I think that there are lots of ways that you can stop youth from being violent and committing acts of vandalism. The thing is, that takes work and money and many cities, like Bathurst, aren't willing to invest in youth, unfortunately. So instead they pretend that they are doing something about the problem to appease the people by coming up with crazy laws that, at best, punish the innocent kids who just want to go out and have fun on Halloween and, at worst, do absolutely nothing if they aren't enforced. Meanwhile, what they are doing is actually counter-productive because when you take away positive activities from children, they will replace them with negative activities. Take away ToTing time from teens and they will find another way to spend the rest of the night, likely doing the very things the municipality was trying to avoid in the first place. They just won't be wearing costumes so that they can't be fined.

I think kids deserve longer than a couple of hours of trick or treating. After all, that basically is Halloween. Get all dressed up for a lousy hour or two? What's the point? Luckily my town agrees and encourages ToTing instead of coming up with crazy laws to restrict it.

towns should invest in the kids. But what about the parents giving them a curfew and making them come home when they should.
Again it comes back to towns /city/states having to step in do some things that the parents will not do.
It is sad that it has to happen but this is what the world has come to.

 

[SHAYMARAYSMOM]

my town had a law for a few years that you could not sell or use silly string on Halloween.
I guess all towns come up with a dumb law at some point

 

[Vijoge]

And yes, we have "rules" here. 6pm til 8pm. When I was a kid, trick or treating didn't start until dark. Not sunset, but dark. And there was no time limit.

It's 3:30-6:00 here. The sun was still shining when we came in! Gosh, when I was a kid we didn't go out until it was dark and we stayed out til 10:30 or 11:00. With no parents. . .it was a different world then.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

towns should invest in the kids. But what about the parents giving them a curfew and making them come home when they should.
Again it comes back to towns /city/states having to step in do some things that the parents will not do.
It is sad that it has to happen but this is what the world has come to.

I don't consider investing in youth making rules for them. I see that as the opposite of what needs to happen. I'm talking about giving money to churches so that they can offer after school programs, building youth centres, making the town square friendly to youth instead of chasing them away, building skate parks, actually listening to the suggestions and concerns of youth, having youth represented on town council, having a general respect for young people instead of seeing them as hoodlums, etc. I don't see that as a substitute for parenting. I see it as support to parenting. I see it as a community caring about all its members, not just the ones with money. There are bad parents everywhere. I'm not excusing that but I think that's a completely separate issue.

 

[JimmyPicker]

It's 3:30-6:00 here. The sun was still shining when we came in! Gosh, when I was a kid we didn't go out until it was dark and we stayed out til 10:30 or 11:00. With no parents. . .it was a different world then.

It truly was a different world then, wasn't it?

 

[Vijoge]

It truly was a different world then, wasn't it?

Yes. I can remember sleeping outside in the backyard, no fence or tent or parents. And after supper in the summer we took a bath, put on our pajamas, and then went outside to play (all over the neighborhood) until the streetlights came on. Once the streetlights came on we had to stay within yelling distance of our house. (this was so you could hear your mom when she yelled for you to come in-usually around 10PM in the summer.)

 

[LadyyRedd]

Maryland law actually goes farther than that. Any sex offender must remain IN THEIR HOUSE, with the lights off on Halloween night. Since there are so many kids out and about, they want the offenders inside their house all night.

Not completely. Washington County actually held a 4 hour meeting at an undisclosed location for all sex offenders that was MANDATORY that they attend.

They also must place a sign on the door that says this house has no candy.

Kimya

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

Yes. I can remember sleeping outside in the backyard, no fence or tent or parents. And after supper in the summer we took a bath, put on our pajamas, and then went outside to play (all over the neighborhood) until the streetlights came on. Once the streetlights came on we had to stay within yelling distance of our house. (this was so you could hear your mom when she yelled for you to come in-usually around 10PM in the summer.)

This still happens!!! It's like that in our neighbourhood.

 

[daisax]

An online friend has a sex offender living on her street. He's not allowed to give out candy but his house and yard were decorated like crazy, and crowds of children and their parents stood around outside admiring it all night (presumably thinking that family wasn't home).

She wanted to point out to parents that he was probably in the house salivating over their children, but figured SHE'd probably get arrested for harassment if she pointed it out.

 

[EMom]

It's 3:30-6:00 here. The sun was still shining when we came in! Gosh, when I was a kid we didn't go out until it was dark and we stayed out til 10:30 or 11:00. With no parents. . .it was a different world then.

No rules here, expect the unwritten ones like "If the porch light is off, don't bother TOTing there." I was born and raised in Texas and I have never heard of certain hours being allowed for TOTing. No matter where I lived, be it a small town, city or suburb, kids start TOTing as soon as it gets dark. Dark, not daylight. Come earlier than that and the candy won't be ready. It takes about an hour and then you're done. You take the kids home, turn off the porch light and it's over, save for a few stragglers. I cannot imagine TOTing in the daylight.

 

[It's A Happy Day]

As far as an age limit, I think thats ridiculous. It's impossible to enforce because one "looks" over a certain age and really in costume how the heck would you be able to tell Um yes judge the child dressed as a clown looked to be about 15 C'mon???? You can't judge by height because at what height does one look to be 14 KWIM?

As for times, I think many towns/cities put the times out there for several reasons ~ safety being the key factor in those reasons. I as an adult like the set times for one basic reason. I do not drive when I KNOW that there are going to be mass amounts of children on the streets. Now that I have young children I am out TorT with them but when TorT'ing is done in our neighborhood we generally have at least 2 more stops - grandma & grandpa's and then my grandmothers to show off their costumes and have a bite to eat. However I will not leave my house in our car until TorT'ing is "over" here ~ which is 5P-7P here. It's not that I drive like a lunatic but it makes me nervous with so many children on the streets in the dark in dark costumes....too many risk factors for something to possibly happen.

I do agree that politics suck the fun out of things but I don't think that certain rules are bad. I don't see alot of negatives to setting a time frame for TorT'ing but do see a lot of positives.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

I do agree that politics suck the fun out of things but I don't think that certain rules are bad. I don't see alot of negatives to setting a time frame for TorT'ing but do see a lot of positives.

The biggest problem I have, though, is not the time frame itself but these crazy fines that they charge anyone whose out past curfew. It's one thing to suggest a time limit that generally everyone obeys and it's another to make it a criminal offense to be on the streets past 7pm.