IMPD reports 0 weekend curfew violations in downtown Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS - Like a Sherlock Holmes mystery, downtown Indianapolis this weekend was a case of "The Curfew Dog That Didn't Bark."




After several consecutive weekends of underage children swarming downtown and gun violence that claimed lives and arrests of teenagers, IMPD's promise to more strictly enforce curfew ordinances and the commitment of community groups to reach out to parents apparently paid off with a single act of gunfire in the heart of downtown during the WNBA All Star and Indiana Black Expo Summer Celebration weekend.

Once again, no children were brought into our safe & secure location last night.

Huge thanks to parents, guardians, family members, and our incredible community partners who helped staff the site all weekend.

This is what community looks like. This is for our kids.
— Chief Chris Bailey (@IMPD_Chief) July 20, 2025

A shooting twelve blocks north of Washington Street on Illinois Street at 2:30 a.m. today has not been linked to either underage youth or curfew violators.




"We did not have one young person who was brought into the reunification center," said New BOY founder Kareem Hines, who was in downtown Indianapolis Saturday night to counsel parents and children at IMPD's reunification center. "It was fortunate that none of the young people got caught up in the curfew enforcement. I think, at the end of the day, it was a win for the people of our city. People were safe this weekend."




The killing of two teens and the wounding of five other young people beneath the Arts Garden in the hours after the Fourth of July fireworks celebration earlier this month capped several weekends of chaos downtown that found blood spilled, windows shot out and police apprehending armed children out well after 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. curfews.




Ahead of this weekend, IMPD Chief Chris Bailey made it clear his officers would take a harder line on young curfew violators, placing them into custody, binding them with flex cuffs and transporting them to a reunification center to await their parents while community groups promised to walk downtown streets and deliver the message that the aim of the concerted effort wasn't punishment but rather the safety of everyone's children downtown.




"I think the community received the message," said Hines. "I think parents stepped up. I think families stepped up. As we canvassed the area, not only were we at the reunification center, but we walked around downtown. I can tell you there were not a lot of young people out after curfew. Not at all. What we saw was a lot of young people hanging out with dads, moms, aunties, uncles - they had adult supervision.




"I think a lot of parents were frustrated," Hines added as he indicated that perhaps responsible adults needed community outrage and support to convince their kids to behave responsibly. "I think it was a mix, more on the side of, 'We're glad the community is stepping up,' more on the side of, 'We're glad that the community is working together.'"




Hines said the key for community groups and the City of Indianapolis will be to build on this momentum and replicate the effort to keep downtown streets peaceful on weekend nights the rest of the summer.




As he spoke with FOX59/CBS4 via Zoom after a pair of late nights walking downtown, minding other peoples' kids, Hines was shepherding 70 young people of New B.O.Y. and Inner Beauty on a bus trip to Florida for two university campus visits and trips to Disney World and Universal Studios Florida as a reward for their participation in programs and adherence to non-violent practices.



via: https://fox59.com/news/impd-reports-0-weekend-curfew-violations-in-downtown-indianapolis/