Hmmm.... I wonder. Isnt the Mall PRIVATE PROPERTY. Can the cops arrest kids for curfew violations on PRIVATE PROPERTY???? Even if it is legal it is a total waste of money and just a jobs program to give high paying jobs to cops. Original Article Chandler cites teens for violating curfew By Katie McDevitt, Tribune August 23, 2005 Teenagers spend Friday nights at the mall eating, watching movies or hanging out with friends. Sounds harmless, right? Not for some. Police are rounding up teens at the Chandler Fashion Square mall on Friday nights, holding them in a vacant restaurant and slapping them with curfew tickets. About 130 kids have been cited in the past three weeks, and parents such as John Prescott Jr. of Tempe are not happy. Prescotts 15-year-old daughter, Jenna, received a curfew ticket about 11:15 p.m. Aug. 20 after her movie let out, he said. He was waiting in the parking lot to pick her up at the curb. Instead, he had to retrieve her from police. My daughter did nothing wrong other than following exactly what I told her to do, said Tempe father John Prescott Jr. Enter the theater, see a movie, exit the movie theater and call me on my cell phone to pick her up curbside. Now, she and I will look forward to a hearing. The added enforcement came from a history of loitering, property damage and suspected gang activity, officials said. Records of calls to police from the mall from April 6 to May 6 show eight criminal damage calls, five disorderly conduct calls, four reports of assaults and seven other misdemeanors. We came up with a plan to tackle the problem head-on, said Sgt. Steve Henry, bicycle squad supervisor. They are children that dont have any legitimate reason to be there. The mall tried distributing fliers to parents, but they ended up on the parking lot pavement, said Westcor property manager Dee Ross. The mall also appealed to local schools for help and posted signs, she said. The posted signs read: Chandler police will enforce the following codes minor in possession of tobacco products, criminal trespass, graffiti, curfew hours for minors. Chandler Fashion Center will prosecute. They dont tell us on the sign what the curfew is, said RuthAnne Rogers, a Tempe parent whose 15-year-old daughter was cited for curfew violation Aug. 5. Ignorance is not an excuse, but they shouldve educated us first. Police disagree. If these kids can find out Britney Spears pants size online, they can know the law, Henry said. These kids have all had the DARE program and have heard this in school. Henry said officers use discretion before issuing tickets. For instance, if parents are in sight and the kid just left the theater, they may not give a citation. Teens with jobs will not be cited if they can prove they are on their way home from work. Police in other cities said they handle the issue differently. Tempe police dont corral kids into holding areas at Arizona Mills mall, or issue such a large volume of tickets. If they are waiting for their parents after a late movie lets out, we wouldnt cite them, Mesa Sgt. Chuck Trapani said about enforcement at Fiesta Mall. Its a tool you dont want to abuse or be unreasonable with. Its there to keep kids from roaming the streets. Warnings would have been enough to have things changed with our children, Prescott said. Contact Katie McDevitt by email, or phone (480) -898-633