Overview
- The City Council voted 6-2 on Tuesday to pass an emergency ordinance setting a curfew from 8 p.m. June 22 to 6 a.m. June 23 for minors in a defined downtown and riverfront zone.
- Under the rule minors must be accompanied by a parent, guardian or responsible adult age 21 or older to remain in designated viewing areas such as Hart Plaza, Spirit Plaza, Erma Henderson Park and Belle Isle.
- Detroit police will enforce the curfew without routine age checks, deploy Community Violence Intervention teams on site, and reunite youth removed for violations with guardians at the Coleman A. Young Recreation Center.
- Opponents including Councilmembers Mary Waters and Denzel McCampbell argued the measure excludes teens from a public event and penalizes all youth for others’ actions while supporters say it is a needed safety step after recent teen-related disturbances and past shootings.
- The curfew is a temporary, annually reauthorized public-safety tool that comes with a detailed event plan of road and park closures, parking and transit changes, and a rain-date provision that keeps the rule in force if the show is postponed.