The courts are too tolerant toward juvenile lawlessness and parents should be made legally responsible for malicious mischief by their children.
These opinions had repeated expression Wednesday in the Hi-Y Youth & Government Assembly sponsored by the YMCA of Buffalo & Erie County in the Board of Supervisors’ chambers in County Hall.
The youthful members, by one of the largest margins of the day, responded to the appeal of Richard Roth, Alpha Hi-Y, Amherst Central High School, and passed a bill that would make parents liable, up to $300, for property damage resulting from vandalism by their children.
Sees Influence on Parents
The approving vote was 43-to-13.
The Amherst student said such a law would “make parents cognizant of their duties and more adequately supervise their children’s conduct.”
He added: “The courts are being very lenient toward juvenile delinquency. Young persons who have committed crimes must be punished.”
Asking a favorable vote on his bill, young Roth concluded: “It will curb juvenile delinquency. It will make children better citizens.”
Defeat Proposal
Following a middle course, the assembly voted down two proposals affecting the relationship
