Mayor Muriel Bowser reinstated an emergency curfew for those under 18 in DC on April 16th, starting at 11 p.m. and lasting until 6 a.m. This curfew was placed on temporary continuance until May 1, 2026.
The curfew comes after repeated occurrences of teen violence across the DC area, especially in places like Navy Yard, in which groups of youth started or participated in unsafe behaviors. Police can also enforce curfew zones at 8 p.m. in areas where there is a high amount of violence and disruptiveness. They are able to break apart groups of nine or more.
On April 21, the DC Council initiated the process for a permanent youth curfew, which passed this May with an 8-5 vote. It is aimed to reduce what is being called “teen takeovers”. The temporary curfew expired on May 1, as new legislation continues to establish updated rules for those under 18. This legislation included amendments to prohibit police from transporting teens who violate the curfew to a detention center, as they would previously detain youth. With this amendment, police would drop the teens off at home or at youth drop-in centers, instead when the curfew is violated.
The first occurrence of a youth curfew in DC was the Juvenile Curfew Act of 1995, put in place to keep both young people and DC communities safe, but this law was challenged in court. Over the years, curfews have been both implemented and lifted.
Violence and crime happen at any time of day. It’s not only once the sun goes down, or in areas that are easy to pick out and categorize as “high risk” that the youth face this unfortunate reality.
The main question is, will this curfew really make a difference? Teenagers all over the DC area are out with friends during the summer, usually much later than 11p.m. Is it fair to assume that every teen is suspicious because of the actions of others? For a teenager, being approached by a police officer may be frightening, especially for young children of color who live in areas like Navy Yard. Young people who break the law do not fear the laws we have. Why would a curfew, enforcing laws already in place, change that? It’s not uncommon for teens to feel unsafe at home, so they meet up with friends instead. Many of these teens wrestle with challenges of their own, and that’s a reason to help them, not criminalize them.
Some teens are lucky to not really know much about this curfew, because they are not in the areas where it’s being heavily enforced. “I didn’t even know” and “that’s a rule?” were the reactions of juniors Cleo Rufael and Chris Grandison when the curfew was brought up.
Others are in support of it as they are more familiar with the violence that happens in the DC area. Junior Driscoll Brown said, “It’s helping people out, keeping people safe.”
Some students are indifferent to the curfew. “I don’t really care about it because it’s not being enforced,” Junior Sara Mesiker said. Senior Miles Dutton reiterated this position, saying “I’m about to turn 18,” implying that it won’t affect him.. A large number of young people spoke up at a DC Council meeting about the curfew, sharing their belief that while people are acting out, many teens are just trying to exist and should not be punished for that. To try and combat the violence and strain on communities in DC is a great thing, but to be truly great it must benefit the youth as well. There is more to offer teens in DC than forcing them to sit at home. •