WASHINGTON – Today, the D.C. Council voted 8 to 5 to pass a permanent youth curfew, on the final vote needed to pass the permanent legislation. This legislation gives the Mayor or the Chief of Police broad authority to establish curfew zones that start at 8 p.m. instead of the regular 11 p.m. or 12:01 a.m. depending on the day of the week.
In response, Alicia Yass, policy advocacy director at ACLU-D.C., said:
“We all have a common goal: making our communities safer, stronger, and more resilient. But today, the D.C. Council missed the mark when they voted for a curfew that will put kids at risk of unnecessary encounters with police. We thank Councilmembers Lewis George, Nadeau, Parker, R. White, and T. White for voting no and Councilmembers Crawford and Nadeau for introducing amendments to reduce the harms of an expanded youth curfew.
The research is clear, and it makes common sense if you know anything about children: police encounters and jails are not good for kids. Young people are most likely to thrive when they have safe options for healthy risk-taking and caregivers who can make ends meet. Over-relying on outdated and ineffective punishment policies will not make our communities safer, but investing in our families will.
As the Council now turns back to making budget decisions, we need them to actively invest in a prevention approach that can stop crime before it happens and help our young people grow into healthy, successful adults. If we want our kids to be safe, we need to give them safe places to go and programs to enjoy. We also need to ensure that their parents and caregivers have the resources they need when they need them. All families in the District deserve high quality facilities, services, and programming, regardless of their income or zip code.
The Youth Affairs roundtable last week showed that our kids, families, and communities want preventive approaches. The question now is whether our leaders have the political will to make them a reality over the next two years.”
To see what positions D.C. candidates in the June 16 primary election took on youth curfews and other civil rights and liberties issues, see their unedited answers to the ACLU-D.C. Candidate Questionnaire.
The research referenced in this statement, along with specific policy recommendations, can be found in Building Safety Through Resources: A Better Path to Public Safety in D.C., a recent report issued by ACLU-D.C.
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