Councilors on Monday unanimously approved a more stringent curfew for minors in the wake of violence downtown over the Fourth of July weekend.
Proposal 232, authored by Democrat Leroy Robinson, sets stricter curfew times for all minors and sets a standard designation of “public safety curfews,” which create regulations for those 16 years of age and younger during times when city leaders perceive a threat.
During typical times, the proposal moves up the curfew s for 15-, 16-, and 17-year-olds from 1 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturdays and from 11 p.m. to 9 p.m. on all other days. It also sets the curfew time for those younger than 15 as 11 p.m. seven days a week.
During designated “public safety curfews,” which can last up to 120 days, 15- and 16-year-olds must be off public streets by 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and by 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.
Those under 15 must be off public streets by 9 p.m. every day during public safety curfew.
Robinson said in a statement on the proposal’s passage that it is “another tool to prevent dangerous situations before they happen.”
The curfew changes come on the the heels of a string of shootings involving youth in the city’s core, including one on July 5 that killed two minors, and just before Indianapolis hosted WNBA All-Star Weekend.
The change takes effect immediately.
Republican Councilor Michael-Paul Hart also introduced a proposal he has said is intended to give the curfew “teeth.” Under Proposal 245, the parent or guardian of a child violating curfew would receive a written warning for the first offense, a $500 fine for a second offense and a $1,500 fine for a third or subsequent offense.
Hart’s proposal will be heard by the council’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee, although a date has not yet been set.
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