INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indianapolis City-County councilors on Monday approved a stricter curfew for youths ages 15-16 that will be put in place when needed for public safety.

The change came amid recent youth violence, including a downtown mass shooting over the July Fourth weekend that killed a 15-year-old boy and a 16-year-old boy.

Under the new city ordinance, two different types of curfew hours now exist in Indianapolis: standard and public safety. It wasn’t immediately clear which one Indianapolis was under after the law passed Monday night.

Standard curfew hours appear to be the same as those under Indiana state law.

Public safety curfew hours will be “a temporary, earlier curfew set during times of heightened community safety concerns to keep minors off the streets sooner,” according to a news release issued Monday night from the City-County Council. The public safety curfew hours essentially make curfew two hours earlier for youths ages 15-16. The public safety curfew hours can be put in place for up to 120 days.

The release from the City-County Council did not make it immediately clear who would decide when public safety curfew hours should take effect; how far in advance such a decision would be made; or how the public at large, visitors to Indianapolis, and the news media would be informed.

Chief Chris Bailey of Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department said Tuesday about juvenile crime, “This summer, we started a report of juvenile activity downtown. The reports continue to show less and less activity late at night.”

Curfew enforcement began in earnest after the early morning shooting on July 5 at the downtown Artsgarden, which injured five other teens — a 16-year-old, a 17-year-old, two 19-year-olds and a 21-year-old — in addition to killing the 15- and 16-year-old.

The Rev. Charles Harrison, board president of the Indianapolis Ten Point Coalition, said of the curfew enforcement, “I think it’s been very effective. The kids now know there is a curfew in place so they are trying not to get called out beyond the curfew hours now.”

Some community members, including parents and grandparents, have expressed support for the curfew. Naomi Pryor, a grandparent, said to local authorities, “Keep on doing what you’re doing. That is the way to go. Parents have to be held accountable for their children.”

At Monday night’s City-County Council meeting, Councilor Michael-Paul Hart, a Republican, introduced a proposal to enact penalties to hold parents accountable. It includes written notice for a child’s first curfew offense; $500 fine for a second offense; and $1,500 fine for a third or subsequent offense.

The City-County Council’s Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee will next discuss the proposal. The next meeting of the City-County Council’s Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee is set for 5:30 p.m. Aug. 20 in the Public Assembly Room at the City-County Building. 

Once the committee has given its recommendation on the proposal, it could be approved by the full City-County Council as soon as its next meeting Sept. 8.

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