Often, a Property Manager is faced with difficulties in the enforcement of the rules laid out in the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&R’s) of the communities which they manage. Generally, most of the enforcement issues regard adults rather than juveniles, but when juveniles break the rules, special consideration should be given to the manner in which they are dealt with. From a security officer’s point of view, it is usually much easier to deal with an adult than it is to deal with a child who is bent on breaking the rules.

Juveniles age 0-17 represented about 25% of the U.S. population in 1994. The 10-17 age group, who represented just over 11% of the U.S. population in 1994, accounted for 19% of all arrests and 35% of all property crime arrests. (1) In California, a minor is defined as anyone who is 18 years of age or younger.(2) While minors are held accountable for their actions in some instances, this is in regards to public law and the criminality of violation thereof. Minors who are under the age of 14 are legally incapable of committing a crime unless there is “clear proof” that they knew the wrongfulness of the act at the time of it’s commission. (3) With regard to vandalism and defacement of property, as well as personal injury, the parent(s) of a minor can be held jointly and severally liable for damages resultant from the willful misconduct of a minor. (4) This does provide a civil remedy to the community association in some cases where an actual loss can be proven.

Given the above legal definitions, the ability of a Community Association to control the unwanted activities of a juvenile is somewhat restricted. The best way to combat juveniles who are chronic violators of the CC&R’s is to instruct the Security Officers who are contracted by the Association to observe the activities of the juveniles and report them back to the Property Manager. The Security Officer can often help curb the unwanted behavior merely by his presence in the area, or with a verbal admonition to the youthful offender. If the Officer is observant, the juvenile’s residence can be determined, either by field interview or by direct observation, and the parent(s) of the child can be contacted by the Association. Often, the parent(s) can be a powerful ally in curbing the behavior of their children. In situations where the CC&R’s provide a mechanism for the assessment of residents who are in violation of the rules, these clauses can be used to assess the parent(s) of a juvenile offender for his or her rule violations. The one thing that binds all of these options is the lack of any physicality or force used against the juvenile offender.

It is useful here to review the powers of arrest which all citizens of the state of California possess. Security Officers have no special police powers at all; they are governed by the same powers of arrest laws as any citizen. An arrest is taking a person into custody. (5) An arrest is made by an actual restraint of the person, or by submission to the custody of the person effecting the arrest. (6) A private person (or a Security Officer) may arrest another for a public offense committed or attempted in his presence, or, in the case of a felony, he may arrest another who committed the felony although not in his presence as long as he has reasonable belief that the person did in fact commit the felony. (7) Please note that this requires that the person being arrested commit a public offense, in other words, a violation of the law, not of the CC&R’s. Say, for example, that a child who is 9 years old is riding a bicycle in the common area in violation of the CC&R’s. The Security Officer can inform him that this against the rules and request that he stop immediately. If the child stops and walks the bike, then the problem was solved effectively. If the child ignores the Officer and continues to ride, the Officer can attempt to determine in which residence the child lives, and report this information to the Association. A simple letter, or an assessment, can solve the problem. Under no circumstances should the Security Officer apprehend, touch, or arrest the child. The child has not committed a crime. An arrest, if effected by the Security Officer, would open everyone concerned to civil liability. The relationship between the Security Officer and the Association is characterized by the legal doctrine of respondeat superior.(8) That concept provides a legal obligation on the part of an employer or Association to compensate those who are injured by the acts of an employee, in this case, the Security Officer. The courts have, in the past, ruled that if a person does not feel free to leave because of the instructions or direction of a Security Officer, then that person is, in fact, under arrest, regardless of whether or not the Officer stated that he is under arrest. This means that a Security Officer cannot detain a person against their will without placing them under arrest. The actual arrest of a juvenile violator by a Security Officer (for a public law violation) should be considered a last resort. Generally, if the Officer can keep the juvenile subject under observation while having a Police Officer respond to actually effect the arrest, the liability of the Association is greatly reduced or eliminated.

The way to avoid these problems is to establish a solid line of communication between the Association, the Property Manager, and the Security Manager. All of the rules of the Association should be examined, and the Security Officer’s response to violations of those rules should be spelled out clearly. Special considerations should be made for juvenile violators to avoid liability for the Association. Finally, the Association should strive to make the parent(s) of a juvenile violator responsible for that child’s actions; the law protects parent’s rights to discipline their own children. With clear lines of communication and good training, much of the Association’s liability can be eliminated, and the quality of life of the residents can be maintained.

Click here for the Official California Legislative Information website with all of the current state laws.

(1) FBI. 1995. Juvenile Justice and Youth Violence, James C. Howell, Sage Publications, Inc., Thousand Oaks, CA: 1997

(2) California C.C. 25 (amended by Stats. 1971, Ch. 1748.)

(3) California P.C. 26

(4) California C.C. 1714.1

(5) California P.C. 834

(6) California P.C. 835

(7) California P.C. 837

(8) The Private Police: Security and Danger, The Rand Corporation, Crane, Russack & Company, Inc., New York, NY: 1977

About the author:

Bill Bancroft is the President of PATROL ONE in Santa Ana, California.

He has been involved in the Private Security industry for over 25 years.