PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A bill by Philadelphia City Councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson raised the curfew to midnight for 16 and 17-year-olds last year. Today, she introduced a bill in Council that would lower that curfew, again to 10 p.m.
Richardson said she wanted the city to be less punitive when she introduced what she called curfew reform last year.
Her bill set year-round curfews instead of separate ones for summer months and weekends. It eliminated fines for violations, and it also created resource centers where police could take kids out after curfew instead of taking them to police districts. The centers offer activities and support, hangout rooms, classrooms, and computer hubs.
In undoing that part of her curfew reform bill with her new proposal, Richardson pointed to the grim toll of gun violence.
“No one is suffering more in our city than our young people. We see young children being shot, caught up in violent incidents and dealing with the trauma of shooting every day,” said Richardson.
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“Over 90 children have already been shot this year, and 23 of them have been shot between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. Keeping young people off the street will help keep them safer, and connecting them to community resources can help prevent further shootings.”
Mayor Jim Kenney cast doubt on that theory, noting the amount of time it would take police to transport curfew violators to resource centers.
“It is a problem we’re going to have to address, but taking police officers off the street to do that kind of work, I don’t think is appropriate at this time,” Kenney said.
“I don’t think the residents around South Street or any neighborhood would be appreciative of officers leaving their post, leaving their patrol to accompany minors to a curfew center.”
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Kenney said stricter gun laws would be more effective.
Richardson specified she wanted the change for the summer months, when kids tend to stay out later. It’s unclear whether there’s enough time for the bill to pass before Council’s summer recess.
A bill to give the School District of Philadelphia a larger share of the real estate tax and reduce the city’s share was among other proposals introduced at this week’s session.
Council also passed a bill requiring certain employers to provide commuter benefits, and a series of good government bills that would strengthen candidate disclosure rules, firm up limits on campaign spending and fundraising, and provide protection for whistleblowers reporting violations.
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