Baltimore's Youth Curfew To Be Enforced, Mayor Says

BALTIMORE, MD — Baltimore is “going back to the old days” by enforcing a 20-year-old curfew intended to keep young people off the streets and protected from gun violence, according to Mayor Brandon Scott.

Scott made the announcement following a Sunday shooting in Inner Harbor that injured two teenagers.

"I want everyone to hear me and hear me clearly," Scott said during a news conference livestreamed on the Baltimore Police Department's Facebook page. "We are going back to the old days. We will be enforcing a youth curfew as we move into the latter spring and summer months."

During the news conference, Scott said the curfew would be 9 p.m. for anyone 14 years old and younger and 10 p.m. for anyone between the ages of 15 and 17.

The curfew will be enforced starting Memorial Day weekend, Scott said.

Despite Scott's announcement, Baltimore has had some form of curfew for young people since 1994, according to the Baltimore Banner; however, the policy's specifics have changed throughout the years, and many administrations chose not to enforce it.

One of the strictest curfews was passed in 2014 when Scott was a Baltimore City Council member, the Baltimore Sun reported.

Under the policy, children who stayed out too late were taken to "curfew centers," where they will be evaluated and their families connected to services, according to the Sun. Children would not face criminal charges, but parents could be fined between $30 and $500.

Baltimore's current curfew required children younger than 14 to be home by 9 p.m., and kids between 14 and 16 should be home by 11 p.m. between Memorial Day and the last Sunday of August, according to the Banner. The rest of the year, the older age group must be home by 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 10 p.m. the rest of the week.

It's unclear how Scott's administration plans to enforce the curfew; however, during Sunday's news conference, he mentioned "Youth Connection Centers," where authorities could take kids caught outside after curfew, according to the Banner.