City council pushes for 8pm curfew for minors downtown after teens attack couple in Streeterville

DOWNTOWN — Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) is pushing for a stricter curfew for minors downtown after two teenagers attacked a couple in Streeterville last week.

The attack occurred around 9:15 p.m. Friday in the 400 block of East Grand Avenue, police said. A woman, whose age was not given, and a 40-year-old man were in the street when a group approached them.

A 14-year-old boy hit the man on the head and a 17-year-old girl pulled the woman’s hair, police said. Both victims were treated at the scene and declined further medical attention, police said.

Both teenagers were charged with assault, police said.

After the woman described the attack in an anonymous interview with FOX32 this week, Hopkins announced in his newsletter that he was working to impose an 8 p.m. curfew for all unaccompanied minors in the central business district.

The boundaries of the central business district include much of the Loop as well as River North, Streeterville and West Loop Gate.

There is currently a curfew in the city for all persons under 17 years of age from 10 p.m. seven days a week.

“The previous curfew is intended to apply to minors who, regardless of their activity, are not allowed to be in the central business district without adult supervision. If this curfew is passed by the full City Council, the Chicago Police Department will have the power to arrest and cite those who violate the curfew,” Hopkins said in his newsletter.

Hopkins referenced the woman’s interview with FOX32 in his newsletter, saying, “The juvenile assailants committed an unprovoked and serious attack that resulted in significant bodily injury to the victims.”

Hopkins did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd), who represents much of the downtown area, said he supports his colleague’s push for an earlier curfew in the area.

“I fully support Ald. Hopkins’ curfew proposal and also call for a permanent police post with officers at the corner of Illinois and New Streets, directly across from the AMC River East, along the main pedestrian route to Navy Pier for the entire summer season,” Reilly said in a statement.

Hopkins is also asking the Cook County District Attorney’s Office to upgrade the misdemeanor charges against the teens to felony charges “given the seriousness of the attackers’ actions,” Hopkins said.

Reilly also agreed with this statement.

“When young people consciously choose to break the law and use violence, they face serious consequences. This horrific behavior cannot be tolerated and must be met with real punishment in our legal system. Until then, these young people will continue to believe they are immune from any punishment,” Reilly said in a statement.

Additional charges could be brought against “some of the other perpetrators who were involved in the crime but were not immediately arrested at the scene,” Hopkins said in his newsletter.

While not all children gathering downtown contribute to public safety problems, Hopkins said stricter curfews and harsher penalties are needed to improve the situation.

“I do not believe that every minor present at these recent gatherings had malicious intent, but it is painfully clear that some agitators and ringleaders have repeatedly incited violent and chaotic actions, and this behavior cannot be tolerated,” Hopkins said.

The curfew for minors was extended by one hour in 2022 by former Mayor Lori Lightfoot in response to citywide “teen trends” and after 16-year-old Seandell Holliday was killed near the Bean. At that time, Lightfoot also changed the policy to apply to youth under 17; previously, it applied to anyone under 16.

The city council had previously passed the curfew, even though studies had shown that curfews “are unlikely to be a meaningful solution to youth crime.”

In 2022, Block Club Chicago examined data from the first few months of the updated curfew and found that safety in police districts that enforced the curfew showed little improvement.

The analysis also showed that the curfew was enforced mainly in the south and west of the city and not in the city center.

Also in response to Holliday’s killing, Lightfoot banned unaccompanied minors under the age of 16 from entering Millennium Park after 6 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. That ban was extended to Maggie Daley Park this summer.

Youth organizers have said the curfew unfairly affects black and brown youth, keeping them away from the inner city while sparing white residents and visitors because there are exceptions for youth returning home from music festivals and concerts. They have argued that the curfew is unconstitutional.

A 2018 report by the Marshall Project showed how curfews in various cities led to profiling among black and brown youth, who tended to be stopped more often.

According to a study by Rutgers University’s School of Criminal Justice, these “encounters are initiated by police officers who make on-site assessments of youths’ criminal propensity, prospects for rehabilitation, and general moral character…with limited information and often relying on racial and ethnic stereotypes,” according to the Marshall Project.

Mayor Brandon Johnson has not spoken out about the citywide curfew for minors, but has previously said the policy for unaccompanied minors in Millennium and Maggie Daley parks is inconsistent with his vision for Chicago.

However, the park curfew remains in effect this summer and Johnson declined to comment on whether he plans to lift it.

The mayor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday evening.

This is a developing story, check back later for further updates.

Listen to the Block Club Chicago podcast: