Detroit city leaders to consider increasing fines issued to parents of minors arrested on curfew violations
As summer continues to heat up, the city of Detroit is in the midst of its summer safety teen violence prevention plan.
During its launch earlier this month, city leaders shared their goal of addressing youth curfew violations after a surge in juvenile crime incidents this summer.
"We're moving with a sense of urgency to ensure that we protect our most vulnerable members of this community," Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison said.
CBS News Detroit took a closer look and found that Mayor Mike Duggan's office wants to take a step further by increasing the amount of money that parents would be fined if their child is arrested.
"We are going to emphasize the enforcement of curfew, because we don't want to have the kinds of shootings going on, the kinds of loss of life that we've had, the pain in this community," Duggan said. "We don't want to fine anybody, but we have to get parents to take this very seriously."
Right now, a first-time offense only carries a fine of $75. If approved by City Council, Duggan wants to increase those penalties by nearly 200%, charging the parent a first-time fee of $250, upping the amount to $500 for repeat offenders.
"This is the beginning of the community rallying together to say we're not putting up with this anymore," Duggan said.
In previous comments, Bettison underlined how those incidents led to the new initiative.
"This is where we need the community and the public's help as well," said Bettison.
CBS News Detroit reached out to the Detroit Police Department for the latest statistics on arrests made since the implementation of the curfew, with a focus on the neighborhoods that have seen recent spikes in crime. CBS News Detroit also asked to speak with Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield to learn about the plan's progress and is waiting to hear back from both offices.
