Code of Conduct – Unattended/Disruptive Children

The Chambers County Library System is a public facility, and requires a certain standard of behavior from those using the library branches and services. Library customers who do not abide by these standards will be asked to leave the premises. Failure to do so could develop into an incident in which the Sheriff’s Department will be contacted.

General Decorum
The following items are prohibited within the library property:

Any form of conduct that disrupts public library service, endangers the public, or library property. This includes: fighting, running, unreasonable noise, loitering, or soliciting.

Harassing patrons or library personnel; using loud, profane, vulgar, or abusive language

Using furniture inappropriately, i.e., placing feet on tables or chairs, tilting back in chairs.

Wearing indecent or vulgar apparel, or recognized gang apparel; chronic appearance at the library with significant body odor.

Chronic return of library materials that are infused with odors, stains, or permanent damages.

Using tobacco products; possession, use, or distribution of any type of controlled substance or drug except as permitted by law; intoxication by reason of alcohol, a controlled substance or drug, or a combination of these substances

Possessing, using, or displaying of a firearm or other weapon

Carrying or leading animals into the building, with the exception of seeing/hearing dogs.

Disruptive/Disorderly/Unattended Children

A child who is disruptive or disorderly will be taken by the staff to the parent. The parent should be informed as to the behavior and as to the fact that such continued behavior is subject to the family’s removal from the building.

If the parent is unable to control the child, the family should be asked to leave. If the parent refuses this request, the Sheriff’s Department should be contacted.

If a child is left unattended at the library, the child may become frightened or disruptive. If the parent cannot be located within the building, staff should attempt to identify the child and to contact the parent or adult responsible for the child. The child should remain with the staff member while this activity takes place.

If the parent cannot be located, the staff member should contact the Sheriff’s Department to pick the child up. Under no circumstances should a staff member remove a child from the library personally.


Formal Action
Should patrons not conform to the standards of behavior as noted above, a certified letter will be sent either to the cardholder (if an adult) or to the parent of the minor in question, noting the issues and instituting a period of banishment from the library premises. This action will take place after a minimum of three (3) oral warnings, and will last for a period of three (3) months from the date of the letter. No appeal of this matter is available.

Chambers County Library Advisory Board
August, 2003; Amended, August 12, 2008
Amended May 12, 2009

Downloading, Importing from Discs, and File Saving

The library system provides reasonable protection on the public access computers from possible viruses and harmful programs. When patrons sign to use the computers, they assume a level of risk for activity, including saving files. The library system cannot be held responsible for the failure of equipment or the loss of patron data.

Downloading:
Materials found on the Web may be protected by copyright. Further reproduction of copyright-protected materials may be an infringement of copyright law, and patrons, not the library, may be liable for any infringement.

Patrons are not allowed to download information or to add programs to the machines. This includes toolbars, games, accepting offers from pop-ups, and deliberate attempts to load programs from personal discs. If utilizing a thumb drive, a patron may download to that drive, under the presumption that there is room there, and nothing will be attached to the hard drive on the pc.

Some Internet games have varying levels of activity, but usually include a free version, which may require some manipulation of the computer by the user. Staff members can be asked for assistance to utilize these features, but it is not a requirement that it be provided.

Saving:
This section applies to patrons utilizing the in-house network machines. After using a word processing program, creating an application online, or copying information from emails or other files, work may only be saved on a disc purchased from the library, to save to either a thumbdrive or to the cd drive. Discs may be purchased for $1.00. A temporary save of a file may be made to the desktop (for purposes of emailing, for example), but must be deleted immediately.



Library Advisory Board, February 2006
Amended, May, 2009