TAMPA, Fla. — The idea of a Tampa-wide curfew for kids under 16 has been the talk of the town for months.
It follows on the heels of a deadly Halloween weekend shooting in Ybor that involved several teens and others in their early twenties.
The teen curfew would fine kids and their parents if they're caught out late at night.
"It would be nice if we had a comprehensive program to reduce violent crime that included a curfew," said Tampa city councilman Alan Clendenin.
And it's a controversial move that Tampa is no stranger to.
In 2015, the city actually repealed a long-standing ordinance that banned kids 17 and under from being out after 11 p.m. on weekdays and midnight on weekends.
Outside of a few exceptions, kids who broke that rule could face a fine for their first offense and jail time for a second offense.
The repeal came after state courts determined that the curfew was unconstitutional.
Ultimately, the controversy led the city council to table plans to reinstate a city curfew until they got more information and heard from the community.
It's a decision that comes much to the relief of the Hillsborough County NAACP, whose members shared concerns at a recent meeting.
"I feel like our law enforcement doesn't get enough training to the point of understanding these new laws [and] Our youth," said a man attending the meeting.
The group told ABC Action News that they're worried a city-wide curfew for kids would lead to over-policing among Black and brown people.
We had 'Biking while Black,' where they targeted a certain sector of the community. And then we also had 'Renting while Black,' where they were evicting innocent families in the African-American community. So, this had a potential of going wrong," said the Hillsborough County NAACP President Yvette Lewis, "I'm glad that they paused it so they can understand what the community needs are and to give the police department a chance to put everything in there that can help benefit the community."
Instead, the group said Tampa needs more community programming for kids of all ages in all parts of the city.
And Lewis brought those suggestions directly to the city council at its most recent meeting.
"The City of Tampa needs to be proactive instead of reactive," she said.
ABC Action News also emailed the Tampa Police Department to get their side of the story on concerns about over-policing and curfews.
They replied with the following statement:
"We always welcome community feedback regarding any enforcement program. We proactively work with our community to address any concerns in a transparent manner. This is reflected in our mission to work in partnership with our community to make tampa safer, together. We look forward to enhancing our existing youth programs to keep our children safe."
