Posted: 9/16/2006 10:37:10 AM EDT
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Malls boot unescorted kids Saturday, September 16, 2006 By WENDY REEVES Times Staff Writer [email protected] Disruptive actions prompt weekend curfew of 6 p.m. In two weeks, weekend nights at the mall will be different in Huntsville. Starting Sept. 29, both Madison Square and Parkway Place malls will begin requiring adult guardians to accompany people under 18 on Friday and Saturday nights. The "Youth Escort Policy" announced on Friday is the result of increasing incidents caused by unsupervised youths, as well as customer and retailer complaints, said Lucinda Hartshorne, manager of Parkway Place, and Joe Black, manager at Madison Square. "A lot of parents drop off their kids at the mall because they feel it's a safe place, and it is," Black said. "But we've become a free baby-sitting service." It's a situation that's hurting business because adults don't like the atmosphere created by hundreds of unsupervised teens roaming the malls on Friday and Saturday nights, Hartshorne said. The new policy means anyone under 18 will need a parent or parental figure (a grandparent, aunt or uncle or other adult guardian) with them at all times to be in the mall after 6 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. At Madison Square recently, Black said an 11-year-old boy tried to rent a stroller because he was left there to baby-sit his 6- and 3-year-old brothers. The boy had no type of identification, "but he had a roll of money," Black said. On several occasions security guards have found kids ages 8, 9 and 10 wandering the parking lot after the Madison Square 12 movie theater closed, Black said. The security guards had to take the kids into the mall until their parents could be located, he said. On a Saturday night in June, the problem escalated at Madison Square when Huntsville police arrested at least nine people - including eight juveniles, Black said. Several fights broke out at the mall, which closed an hour early. "There's disruptive behavior, profanity and the kids are loud," Black said. "And we sell a lot of Coca-Colas, but not many bracelets and Rolexes." It's a problem across the nation, said Albert Waterhouse, a representative of CBL & Associates Properties Inc., which owns both malls and others across the U.S. "In malls where this policy has already been implemented, within 60 to 90 days we saw sales go up and shoplifting incidents dropped," Waterhouse said. When the policy takes effect on Friday, Sept. 29, both malls will broadcast announcements starting at 5 p.m. to let teens know that they have an hour to make arrangements to be picked up or leave if they don't have an adult escort. Mall security staff will be increased for several weeks and will approach suspected violators "in a courteous way, to explain the new policy and ask for a picture ID," Hartshorne said. "If they are not 18 or not old enough to drive, we'll take them to a designated room in the mall and call their parents." Is being a responsible parent now just an option? |
A movie theater in the local mall tried to get the cops to start arresting unescorted teens. It was very amusing to see the manager slip-up on the local evening news when he accidentally admitted that they would get to sell a lot more expensive adult movie tickets if the cops would help them. As usual, follow the money.z |
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Since teenagers spend a huge chunk of money on mall crap, this policy may come back to haunt them. Apparently, the mall ninjas do not have the balls to run off a few trouble makers. You gotta know you suck as a mall ninja when a 14y/o loud mouth has more kung fu than your whole shift. 
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I don't think you're crazy at all. Need a helping hand to make it through a rough time or something in life genuinely came out of left field and knocked you on your ass? Got no problem helping with that. Life long loser, deadbeat, government tit-sucking scum who can't even survive on your own after being given a chance? You've proven that you aren't fit to support yourself, much less bring kids into the world. By definition the government (and all us that pay INTO the system) become parents when you pork some ho or get knocked up to increase your benefits. Fuck that. |