MEXICO — The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday approved placing sex offender and curfew ordinances on the June 9 ballot.
A week earlier, the Planning Board approved the ordinances, drafted by Mexico police Chief Roy Hodsdon.
On Wednesday, Town Manager John Madigan said the draft ordinances are being reviewed by Maine Municipal Association attorneys.
After reviewing sex offender ordinances from Rumford and South Portland, the Planning Board tasked Hodsdon with writing an ordinance for Mexico.
Among the provisions are that sex offenders cannot reside within 750 feet of a public or private elementary, middle or high school, or a municipal property where children are the primary users.
At a recent Planning Board meeting, Hodsdon said, “Most towns will have an ordinance that states sex offenders can’t live within a certain distance of schools or other public places where kids may be. Mexico doesn’t have anything like that. When I was appointed chief, I said that one of my goals was to crack down on sex offender violations.”
In the ordinance, designated sex offenders are defined as people convicted of sex offenses committed against any person who had not attained 14 years of age at the time of the offense, regardless of whether the offense was committed in Maine or another jurisdiction.
Restricted properties include the Mexico Recreation Center, Mexico Recreation Park, Mountain Valley Middle School, Meroby Elementary School, Mexico Public Library and all licensed and registered day care facilities.
The proposed ordinance says the town may take legal action against the violator, and also seek a penalty in the minimum amount of $500 per day, with each day of violation constituting a separate violation.
Hodsdon told the Planning Board he was in favor of a curfew ordinance, but wanted to make sure it was fair to minors who were coming to and from work or local events.
“If we’ve been having a lot of burglaries in the area, and we see someone out, we can talk to them,” Hodsdon said. “However, it’s not against the law for someone to walk down Main Street at midnight.”
Under the proposed ordinance, curfew hours would be from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. the following day. A minor would be defined as anyone 17 years old or younger.
Before taking any action to enforce this ordinance, a police officer shall ask for the person’s age and may ask for proof of age. If the person is a minor or can’t produce identification proving otherwise, the officer can ask the reason for the apparent offenders being in a public place. The officer shall not take action to enforce this unless it’s believed an offense has occurred and based on any responses as well as the circumstances. Then the officer may take the minor into custody for the purpose of contacting the minor’s parents or guardians to take control of the minor.
The officer may summon the minor and the minor’s parents or guardians to District Court for violation of this ordinance. The penalty for a minor who violates this ordinance is, for the first offense, taking the minor to the Police Department and notifying parents or guardians and providing a copy of the curfew ordinance.
Second offense is five hours of community service and/or a fine of $50 and any court costs. Third offence is 10 hours of community service and/or a fine up to $100 plus court costs. Subsequent offenses would result in a fine of $150 plus any court costs.
The penalty for parents or guardians for the first offense is a fine of $100 plus court cost; for each subsequent offense, a fine of $200 plus court costs.
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