(A) It shall be a violation of this subchapter for any person under the age of 18 who is enrolled in a public, private, or parochial school to absent himself from attendance at such school without the permission of his legal guardians or parents. Any person who shall so absent himself shall be guilty of the offense of truancy and be subject to the penalties set forth below. Emergency or unforeseen absences due to illness or other reasonable cause beyond the control of the person so absenting himself from school without the permission of his parents or legal guardians shall not constitute truancy if such permission is obtained from the parents or legal guardians and submitted in writing to the proper school authorities within 24 hours of such absence.
(B) Procedure: Initial contact and documentation. Upon encountering a school-aged individual outside of school during school hours, a police officer or truant officer shall:
(1) Question such individual in order to determine whether the individual has violated this subchapter and verify truancy with the school via radio, telephone, or personal visit; and
(2) Upon reasonably ascertaining that such individual has violated this subchapter, seize the individual and return him to the proper authority at the school; and
(3) Complete a truancy report containing the following information: full name, date of birth, address, telephone number, parent or guardian's name, work place telephone number, and school attended; and
(4) Forward a copy of the report to juvenile investigations and the truant officer of Will County. A juvenile officer shall renew the report and complete or update an applicable juvenile contact card. Further, a school representative or county truant officer may file a report of truancy directly with a juvenile officer in cases of frequent truancy that is not documented by police reports.
(C) Procedure: Chronic Truants. A chronic truant, hereinafter defined as an individual who has violated this subchapter three times in one year or has otherwise been shown to have absented himself from school three times in one year, shall submit to a student and parent conference with either a juvenile officer, county truant officer or school representative at the request of same. The following disposition or "staffing" may result:
(1) Station adjustment.
(2) Station adjustment with supervision by a juvenile officer, if applicable.
(3) Referral of chronic truant to counseling and/or appropriate agency to deal with the specialized problem.
(4) Referral to the Court.
(D) Recommended Dispositions in Juvenile or Adult Court. The Court shall consider the following as possible dispositions of a chronic truancy case:
(1) Adult supervision for one year or for the balance of the school year in which the offense was committed.
(2) Suspension of driver's license where applicable.
(3) Community service work.
(4) Fines of $150 to $500, which may be waived upon the successful completion of the school year without unexplained absence.
(5) Referral to specific agencies available to address specific problems.
(Ord. 767, passed 7-19-93)