Baltimore youth curfew in summer starts, attempt to curb teen violence

With the start of Memorial Day weekend, a curfew for youths is set to go into effect in the City of Baltimore.

Beginning Friday night, the mandated curfew goes into effect in an effort to curtail the city’s recent surge in teen gun violence, Mayor Brandon Scott’s office said this week.

Enforced on weekends and holidays, the curfew is part of a strategy introduced by Scott to minimize the interaction between kids and police and to keep children out of harm’s way during summertime, when law enforcement said violent crime tends to climb.

Experts say juvenile curfews have historically proven ineffective and often come with unintended consequences. 

Teen curfewsJuvenile curfews come with consequences, but not the ones they’re designed for, studies show

What are the Baltimore curfew hours?

The curfew begins Friday at 10 p.m. and last through Sept. 3, 2023, the mayor’s office said. 

Under the mandate, any young person under age 14 out after 10 p.m. and between the ages of 14-16 out after 11 p.m. on weekend or holiday nights, without a parent or guardian will be “engaged by non-law enforcement staff where they will first be encouraged to go home or call their parent or guardian before being transported to an engagement center,” the mayor’s office said.