Monterey Park, CA Curfew Laws: Juvenile Curfew (2026)

Section 9.18.020 defines "curfew hours" as eight-thirty a.m. until one-thirty p.m. Monday through Friday (the daytime truancy curfew) plus ten p.m. until sunrise every day of the week (the nighttime curfew). Section 9.18.030 makes it unlawful for a minor, defined as anyone under eighteen (§ 9.18.020), to remain in any public place or on the premises of any establishment within the city during those hours. Section 9.18.040 lists defenses to prosecution, including being accompanied by a parent, guardian, or other responsible person; running an errand at a responsible person's direction; working or traveling to or from a job; responding to an emergency; attending a supervised school, religious, or city-sponsored activity; exercising First Amendment rights; traveling in interstate commerce; or being excused from school under state law.

Before citing anyone, § 9.18.050 requires a police officer to ask the person's age and reason for being out, and the officer may not cite unless no defense appears to exist. Under § 9.18.060, each violation is a separate infraction, and a minor cited must appear in juvenile traffic court with a responsible person. Fines run one hundred dollars for a first offense within a year, two hundred dollars for a second, and five hundred dollars for a third, with an option of up to ten hours of community service instead of or in addition to a fine.

The court can set aside the fine if the minor has no unexcused school absences for sixty days. Section 9.18.070 makes the minor and the responsible person jointly liable for law enforcement costs under Welfare and Institutions Code § 625.5.