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Indianapolis will likely move the start time for curfew restrictions two hours earlier through August in a public safety maneuver.
Members of the City-County Council’s Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee voted 9-1 Wednesday to recommend that the full council approve a proposal that would make curfew start two hours earlier.
State law currently dictates that children ages 15 through 17 can be penalized for being in a public place without a parent or guardian after 1 a.m. and before 5 a.m. on weekends and after 11 p.m. and before 5 a.m. on weekdays. For children younger than 15, the weeklong curfew begins at 11 p.m. and ends at 5 a.m.
But Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Chief Tanya Terry argued Wednesday evening that current conditions, as well as “concerning trends” in teen violence, call for tightening that window. Councilors agreed.
If the full City-County Council approves the “public safety curfew hours” proposal on May 4, Indianapolis police will be able to enforce a 9 p.m. daily curfew for children younger than 15. For teens ages 16 and 17, the 9 p.m. curfew would apply Sunday through Thursday, while Friday and Saturday curfew would begin at 11 p.m.
The curfew would be in effect for 120 days, which means it would last until the start of August. Exemptions exist for work, school events and religious activities or situations including emergencies and travel.
IMPD chief argues for curfew adjustment
Just this past weekend, Terry said officers arrested a 13-year-old with a pistol at 1:30 a.m. The teen was with a 20-year-old armed with a Glock handgun with an extended magazine and a machine gun conversion device.
She said proactive action was needed due to the trend of “teen takeovers” and a local increase in the percentage of juveniles involved in crimes.
“In response to what we have seen so far this year and in past summers, we need to intervene early, in a non-intrusive way, and provide support to our young people,” Terry told the committee.
Although overall numbers for homicides, non-fatal shootings and assaults are down so far this year when compared with the first quarter of 2025, Terry said a greater percentage of victims are juveniles.
A flyer for a “teen takeover” at Castleton Square Mall circulated on social media in late March, Terry said, but officers intervened. Terry said such events in Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit and Washington, D.C., have involved teenagers fighting, damaging property and committing or being victims of violent crimes including shootings.
Terry also explained the existing protocol for officers before taking curfew violator into custody. She said they are looking for “disruptive, disorderly, criminal, concerning behavior” rather than “trying to stop any youthful-appearing person for walking down the street.”
If a youth is found to be violating curfew, police will escort them to a designated safe space where they have access to resources from nonprofit and community partners and can be connected with a parent or guardian.
“Our real goal is to get to the root issues in why a kid might be out unattended or by themselves, and provide resources through community-based organizations to them and their family,” Terry said.
She said the space, which IMPD launched in July, didn’t need to be used at all in 2025. She said a handful of youths have been taken there in 2026.
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