Chicago curfew for minors goes into effect; ACLU pushes back

Public areas at the moment are off-limits at 10 p.m. per Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s government order.

The manager order caught many without warning. It was simply this previous Monday, the mayor mentioned the citywide curfew would solely be moved up on weekends.

SEE MORE: Mother of juvenile fatally shot at ‘Bean’ says he nervous about residing previous 21

What got here out Tuesday was fairly completely different, nevertheless.

The brand new rule for minors 12 years of age or older prohibits them from remaining in any public place or on the premises of any institution between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., seven days of the week.

The order mentioned partially that, “a rise within the quantity and seriousness of violent and property crimes dedicated by minors inside the Metropolis has created an emergency.”

SEE MORE: Teen charged after boy killed close to Millennium Park ‘Bean;’ Mayor Lightfoot enacts weekend curfew

The American Civil Liberties Union, nevertheless, has loudly spoken out in opposition to each the brand new restrictions imposed on Millennium Park and the curfew, saying there isn’t any proof to help the declare curfews reduce down on crime, and that, identical to prior to now, this will probably be utilized disproportionately on Black teenagers.

“That is focused on the very individuals who do not have locations to go in their very own group,” mentioned Ed Yohnka, director of communications and coverage for ACLU Illinois. “This will probably be utilized to individuals who have at all times been the topic of police focusing on. And that is simply the mistaken solution to go about this.”

The manager order duties the Chicago Police Division with the rapid enforcement of the curfew. Though, identical to with the brand new restrictions on Millennium Park, it isn’t clear what that enforcement will appear like, with the mayor repeatedly saying this week that is about educating each teenagers and oldsters on the principles, and never about effecting mass arrests of youngsters.

Full Assertion from ACLU on Lightfoot’s curfew

“We’re dissatisfied that the Metropolis responded to our request earlier in the present day for extra data by issuing an government order missing in so some ways. To start, the Mayor calls it an emergency that younger persons are gathering in Millennium Park – whereas crowds have gathered in lots of different components of the Metropolis for years with no such designation. She suggests {that a} curfew will scale back crime, regardless of ample proof (clearly articulated on this morning’s Chicago Solar Instances) that curfews don’t scale back crime. Her fiat additional modifications the age of these topic to the Metropolis’s curfew ordinance (from 16 to 18) and would allow the indefinite detention of these caught in violation of her order till an eligible grownup arrives. Lastly, the order singles out as an exception ticketed occasions, suggesting that the curfew will goal deprived youth in our Metropolis who’re unable to buy a ticket to a pricey occasion. Given the disproportionate software of the curfew restrictions after George Floyd’s homicide, this can be a actual concern.

“We requested the Mayor and Metropolis to clarify how this ordinance can be carried out. This method does not resolve an issue – it additional damages relations between younger folks and the group. The Mayor is headed within the mistaken path and should abandon this path as quickly as potential.”