Pittsburgh City Council nixes plans for curfew enforcement to combat youth violence

Pittsburgh City Council has nixed a proposal to ramp up enforcement of the city’s curfew for minors.

Council members, however, say they remain committed to opening 24-hour resource centers geared toward the city’s youth to try to curb an increase in violence in Pittsburgh.

Council President Theresa Kail-Smith, D-West End, last week introduced a measure that would call on city officials to ramp up enforcement of a curfew that is technically in place in the city, but hasn’t been enforced because there is nowhere for police to take juveniles who violate it.

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey said he opposed the idea of enforcing a curfew, citing concerns that it would be impossible to enforce given that Pennsylvania does not require people to carry an ID in public. He said he also worried such a measure could harm community-police relations.

Kail-Smith has said she was more interested in establishing resource centers that would provide safe places for kids to get help 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“There’s a lot of need out there,” Kail-Smith said. “There’s a lot of people that need help.”

After council voted unanimously Wednesday to not go forward with the curfew enforcement proposal, Kail-Smith introduced legislation to create a committee dedicated to launching resource centers for the city’s youth.

“Every day there’s a shooting in this region — every single day,” Kail-Smith said. “Our families are asking for something immediate. They want intervention right now.”

Kail-Smith and Gainey appeared to strike a compromise in coming together to form the committee. It will be made up of four members appointed by the mayor and five members appointed by the council president.

The group, whose members have not yet been identified, will be tasked with studying and making recommendations on city-owned facilities in areas impacted most by youth violence where youth and family resource centers could be opened.

Gainey said in a statement that providing resources for kids and their families was a “critical tool” in his administration’s efforts to create a safer city.

“It is going to take all of us working together to help end the violence,” he said.

Kail-Smith said she was grateful for the partnership with the mayor’s office. “This is about saving lives, helping struggling families and making sure everyone in our city feels safe,” she said.

The legislation requires committee members to be appointed by Feb. 14.

Kail-Smith said the centers could be operated in partnership with other organizations throughout the city that are focused on violence prevention and intervention.

The goal, she said, is to have centers operating by spring or early summer.

Council unanimously supported the measure in a preliminary vote Wednesday. It could be ready for a final vote as early as next week.