In Some Town Kids Over 12 Could Face Jail Time For Trick-or-Treating
How Old is Too Old to Trick-or-Treat?
According to some towns across the country, an age limit isn't just a suggestion, but an offense punishable with jail time.
Three different states across the U.S. have some pretty harsh punishments for kids caught dawing costumes over the "legal limit" and going door-to-door asking for candy.
Are there kids you see out on Halloween that might be for old for trick-or-treating? Sure.
But should they serve jail time for it? No.
I myself went out trick-or-treating after I was in high school and for a very good reason.
In my choir class sophomore year, we had a foreign exchange student from Russia named Yulia. Sweet girls, who my friends and I quickly became friends with too.
In becoming her friend, we learned that didn't celebrate Halloween in Russia the same as we do here and she had never been trick-or-treating. So we helped her find a costume and took her around our neighborhood.
It was a blast! But yeah, we had people who asked and or said we were too old for trick-or-treating.
However, once we explained the situation people thought it was great. Sometimes we even got extra candy for it.
If we were to do the same thing today in certain towns, we'd face jail time and have a permanent record for it. And that's not right.
So what and where are these ludacris ordinances?
- Chesapeake, Virginia anyone over the age of 13 that is caught trick-or-treating could be fined and spend up to 6 months in jail.
- Newport, Virginia kids are allowed to trick-or-treat until they're in seventh grade or until they turn 12. Thankfully if caught, it's only a misdemeanor.
- Several North Carolina cities have a 9pm curfew for all, plus some similar legal restrictions for 12 or 13-year-olds.
- In parts of southern New Jersey the curfew on Halloween is 7pm and in Upper Deerfield Township 12 is the official cut-off age.
Thankfully no towns in Illinois have decided to put age restrictions on trick-or-treating.