Chicago City Council delays vote on snap curfew aimed at preventing large teen gatherings
Chicagos snap curfew vote stalls in city council
The Chicago City Council has delayed the vote on allowing police to issue a temporary curfew in response to recent "teen takeover" trends.
CHICAGO - The Chicago City Council has delayed a vote Wednesday on allowing police to implement temporary curfews aimed at preventing mass gatherings of unaccompanied teenagers, which have at times turned violent.
Supporters say the measure would help prevent the type of violence seen during recent so-called "teen takeovers," especially in the downtown area, but opponents have said the measure is unnecessary and could lead to a violation of residents’ rights.
Chicago City Council considers snap curfew policy to stop teen takeovers
The Chicago City Council on Wednesday is expected to consider a proposal to allow for temporary curfews aimed at stopping mass gatherings of young people that have at times turned violent.
The now-delayed vote on the proposal comes after the council’s Public Safety Committee debated the matter for several hours over multiple meetings and finally approved it on Tuesday.
Debate over teen curfew
The backstory:
Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd Ward) initially pushed for an earlier standing curfew for teenagers in the downtown area, but later revamped his proposal to allow for the snap curfews.
The measure would allow the Chicago Police superintendent, in consultation with an official in the mayor’s office, to implement a temporary curfew in specific areas if they learn a mass gathering was planned that could turn violent.
Alderman Brian Hopkins, 2nd, talks to colleagues before a City Council meeting, April 16, 2025, at City Hall in Chicago. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
"We’re not gonna stop youth gatherings in a blanket approach across the city," Hopkins said on Tuesday. "We’re going to be highly selective about which potential teen trends are the ones that are likely to result in violence."
Hopkins pushed for a change in the city’s curfew policy after multiple shootings earlier this year in the Loop and Streeterville neighborhood during such teen gatherings.
The alderman said if the measure was approved at Wednesday’s meeting, it could go into effect in time for summer.
The other side:
Still, critics of the plan, including Mayor Brandon Johnson, have argued that curfews are not an effective policing tool and questioned if the measure stands up to legal scrutiny.
On Tuesday, Johnson reiterated that he wanted to focus more on providing opportunities and "safe spaces" for young residents to spend their time, instead of turning to mass gatherings.
"If we don’t give young people real activity, we don’t help them find their purpose, we’re just gonna find ourselves in a tailspin," Johnson said at a news conference.
The ACLU of Illinois also criticized the measure as a "Band-Aid" approach that does little to address the root causes of violence or the participation of teens in large gatherings.