Planning on trick-or-treating this Halloween? Depending on how old you are, you may be breaking the law.
According to city laws in towns across the U.S., some candy-grubbers might have to sit out on the festivities because of their age.
Multiple cities have placed an age limit on trick-or-treating. According to Section 46-8 of the Chesapeake, Virginia municipal code, any person over the age of 14 is prohibited from the activity. Breaking this code is a Class 4 misdemeanor, and could result in a $250 fine. Other cities like Jacksonville, Illinois; Rayne, Louisiana; and Belleville, Virginia have similar laws, according to NPR.
“I do understand, having older kids running around with a bunch of little kids might not be the safest,” said Emma Rohelder, a freshman business major at USC. “But, I don’t think there needs to be laws banning kids from trick-or-treating,” she said.
Despite the age limits in cities across the country, some USC students are planning on partaking in the Halloween tradition themselves.
Hayley Feinstein, a senior majoring in theater at USC, says she plans on going trick-or-treating tomorrow with at least five of her friends. “You just have a lot of good nostalgia and great early childhood memories from trick or treating,” said Feinstein.
From a college student perspective, Feinstein said, “I think trick-or-treating was something that was more reasonable for my friends because they didn’t want to really pay $100 to go to Halloween Horror Nights.”
Beyond age restrictions, some cities have imposed curfews on Halloween night that inhibit teens from trick-or-treating. For instance, in parts of South Jersey, the curfew is at 7 p.m., according to ABC 7 Los Angeles.
These regulations were not instated randomly. According to the article from CNN, the ordinance regarding trick-or-treating in Chesapeake appeared after an incident of teenagers throwing firecrackers into younger children’s trick-or-treat bags in Hampton Roads in 1968. CNN reported that Chesapeake spokesperson Heath Covey said the regulation was intended to “keep people safe.”
Mark Eckert, a former mayor of Belleville, Illinois (2004-2021), signed the ordinance forbidding teenagers from participating in trick-or-treating in 2008, according to Slate Magazine. Eckert said that he got calls from seniors reporting they felt threatened by a large number of kids on their front porch and getting aggressive in some cases.
“Was there anything scientific to it? No,” said Eckert in an interview with Slate. “It’s time that we take some leadership and some action to make sure that the general overall population doesn’t take this particular Halloween event and start to feel like they need to leave town for the evening because they feel intimidated.”
Still, some USC students like Feinstein don’t want to let go of the time-honored tradition.
“It’s a really fun way of celebrating Halloween,” she said. “I love engaging with my inner child sometimes. I don’t feel like there should be shame in it.”