9.04.010 Enactment authority--Applicability.

This chapter is enacted pursuant to the authority granted the Board of County Commissioners under Section 30-15-401, et seq., C.R.S. This chapter shall become effective on the date set forth herein, and shall remain in full force and effect until amended, repealed or rescinded by a future ordinance adopted by the Board of County Commissioners of Pueblo County, Colorado. Once effective, this chapter shall be applicable to the restraint and punishment of loitering by juveniles during specified nighttime hours and of defacement of, including the affixing of graffiti to, buildings and other public or private property by juveniles within Pueblo County, Colorado, including the Towns of Rye and Boone, except the portions thereof located within the boundaries of the incorporated city limits of Pueblo, Colorado. (Ord. 1 § 1(A), 1994)(Ord. 2004-1)

9.04.020 Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter is to protect the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Pueblo County, Colorado, by controlling and eliminating, to the extent possible, nighttime loitering, related mischievous or criminal activities, and defacement of, including the affixing of graffiti to, buildings and other public or private property by juveniles. (Ord. 1 § 1(B), 1994)

9.04.030 Definitions.

As used in this chapter, the following words, unless the context in which they are used indicates otherwise, shall be given the following meanings:

"Juvenile" means a person under eighteen (18) years of age.

"Loiter" or "loitering" means remaining idle in essentially one location, to be dilatory, to tarry, to dawdle and shall include, but not be limited to, standing around, hanging out, sitting, kneeling, sauntering or prowling. It shall also include "cruising," driving or riding in or on a vehicle repeatedly up and down a street, road or other public or private way, or repeatedly around a given area.

"Private place" means any privately owned property or business, including any parking lot, vacant lot, yard, building, place of amusement, eating establishment, or the like, where juveniles may be found without the consent or permission of the owner or occupant thereof or when the property or business is closed to the public.

"Public place" means any publicly owned property or facility, including any street, road, highway, sidewalk, alley, parking lot, park, playground, common area, school or other public building, where juveniles may be found, except for public facilities that are holding events or activities expressly open to the juveniles at the time when they are found there.

"Specified nighttime hours" mean Saturday and Sunday mornings between the hours of twelve a.m. (midnight) and six a.m. and Sunday evening through Friday morning between the hours of ten p.m. and six a.m., according to the applicable time standard then in effect for the county. (Ord. 1 § 1(C), 1994)

9.04.040 Unlawful acts.

It is unlawful for any juvenile to loiter in any public place or private place during specified nighttime hours. It is also unlawful for any juvenile to deface, including the affixing of graffiti to, buildings and other public or private property. Any juvenile found in any public place or private place during specified nighttime hours, and any juvenile found defacing, or affixing graffiti to, buildings and other public or private property, as defined in Section 9.04.030, shall be presumed to be in violation of this section, except as otherwise provided in Section 9.04.050. (Ord. 1 § 2, 1994)

9.04.050 Exceptions.

The following shall not be in violation of Section 9.04.040, as it pertains to juvenile loitering during specified nighttime hours.

A. Any juvenile who is accompanied by a parent, guardian or other person of twenty-one (21) years of age or more having proper lawful custody of the juvenile.

B. Any juvenile who is travelling to or from lawful employment, for up to one-half hour of travel time to and from the place of employment when the juvenile is carrying an employer’s written and signed statement specifying the type, hours and place of employment, and the name of the juvenile employee.

C. Any juvenile who is engaged in an activity or event sponsored by an established organization, such as a school or church, or engaged in an activity or event clearly involving the First Amendment exercise of free speech, religious rites, and/or the right to petition the government for redress of grievances, such as attending political or civic meetings or church services, when such an activity is otherwise lawful.

D. Any juvenile who is participating in a lawful activity, whether it be social, religious, or civic, so long as the juvenile travels directly to and from that activity. (Ord. 1 § 3, 1994)

9.04.060 Enforcement agencies.

This chapter shall be enforced by the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Department, with any judicial prosecution to be conducted by the District Attorney’s Office for the 10th Judicial District. (Ord. 1 § 4, 1994)

9.04.070 Enforcement, prosecution and penalties.

A. The Pueblo County Sheriff and his or her deputies shall have authority to order any juvenile to immediately cease any behavior which is in violation of this chapter. This authority shall include the right to take a juvenile into temporary custody for the purpose of conveying the juvenile to the home of his or her parent, guardian or legal custodian, or for the purpose of locating his or her parent, guardian or legal custodian and to request that this person retrieve the juvenile. Should it not be possible to deliver home or arrange for the retrieval of a juvenile, the juvenile will be released by six a.m. of the same morning or the morning following the evening when the juvenile was taken into custody, unless the juvenile is lawfully detained for other reasons.

B. Criminal prosecution may be brought against a juvenile for a violation of this chapter in accordance with Sections 30-15-402 and 30-15-410, C.R.S., and under the penalty assessment procedure provided for in Section 16-2-201, C.R.S. The Sheriff’s Department is authorized to devise a ticketing system in conformance with Section 16-2-201, C.R.S.

C. Each violation of this chapter shall be deemed separate and distinct from any other violation of this chapter, or of any other state or local law, rule or regulation.

D. Any juvenile who violates this chapter commits a Class II petty offense and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than three hundred dollars ($300.00) for each separate violation. Fines are to be set by the County Court, unless the accused juvenile enters a plea of guilty or no contest and pays the fine, in which case the fine shall be one hundred dollars ($100.00).

E. All fines paid or connected with any violation of this chapter shall be made payable to Pueblo County and shall be paid over to the Pueblo County Treasurer immediately upon the receipt thereof by the individual or entity receiving such moneys. Upon receipt of such moneys, the Pueblo County Treasurer shall deposit the same into the county general fund. (Ord. 1 § 5, 1994).

9.04.080 Additional remedies.

The remedies provided in this chapter shall be cumulative and in addition to any other remedies, criminal or civil, which may be available. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to preclude prosecution under any applicable criminal statute. (Ord. 1 § 6, 1994)