December 6, 2011

“The County Council’s refusal to even take a yes or no vote on the proposed youth curfew is a failure of leadership.

“Leadership means stepping up to the plate and deciding – yes or no – on critical issues that face our County. The youth curfew legislation has been before the County Council since July. It has been discussed exhaustively. We don’t need more talk – we need action.
“Our Police very much need this critical tool in order to deal with situations such as happened recently in Silver Spring and Germantown. I cannot believe that the Council denies our police officers this added help. I think it is unfortunate when politicians ‘second-guess’ our law enforcement professionals.

“I have heard that some Councilmembers are ‘afraid’ to vote for fear of offending one side or the other. I have heard others say, ‘Let’s wait until another late-night youth crime incident happens and then we’ll vote on it.’

“That’s not leadership. That’s the opposite of leadership.

“I do appreciate that Councilmembers Nancy Floreen, Craig Rice, and Valerie Ervin were willing to stand up and take a stand. I regret the others could not find the courage to follow their example.

“I will continue to work even harder to enhance public safety, especially for our young people. Our Police need and want a youth curfew which would help them perform their jobs and better protect our public. Our young people need the added protection a curfew brings.

“The truth is that the Council action today makes it that much harder to protect our young people and fight crime. And that is nothing to celebrate."

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Contact: Patrick Lacefield 240-777-6528