Detroit — The City Council approved Tuesday expanding the hours of curfew for unaccompanied minors during Detroit’s 68th annual Ford Fireworks scheduled for Monday, though two members questioned the need.
The city has traditionally imposed a teen curfew during the fireworks event that draws hundreds of thousands to the downtown riverfront. The curfew will start at 8 p.m. on Monday, June 22, for unaccompanied minors under the age of 18 and end at 6 a.m. the next day, according to the ordinance proposal. It is the same temporary curfew the city has imposed for at least a decade, city officials said.
But this year, the proposed curfew stirred a robust discussion because of violence stemming from teen takeovers and whether the city is providing enough alternatives to enjoy public spaces.
The council approved the fireworks curfew by a 6-2 vote, with council members Mary Waters and Denzell McCampbell. Council member Gabriela Santiago-Romero was absent.
For weeks, the temporary fireworks curfew has drawn more attention because of the emergence of “teen takeovers,” a social media trend that brings crowds of teenagers to a certain location in Detroit. So far this year, teen takeovers in Detroit have resulted in hundreds of juveniles gathering downtown and elsewhere, leading to vandalism, fights and one nonfatal shooting.
A May 17 gathering downtown resulted in the shooting of 14-year-old Tavuan Clark. A 16-year-old Detroiter has been charged with carrying a concealed weapon in connection with the shooting
Council member Coleman Young II brought up the teen takeover violence as part of his reason for approving the temporary fireworks curfew.
“I think what happened downtown with that 14-year-old that got shot and nearly lost his life, we can’t have that,” Young said Tuesday. “We have to have a very strong symbol that we’re not going to tolerate that.”
He indicated he would support expanding the fireworks curfew.
“I’m in full support of this, not just in terms for the fireworks but also for downtown, period,” Young said.
But City Council member Denzel McCampbell said the data doesn’t back up the assertion that the temporary curfew is effective. He pointed out that a 17-year-old last year was among the two people shot during last year’s fireworks.
In a Monday council committee discussion, police officials said that 156 juveniles were cited for violating the fireworks curfew in 2025.
“The question before the council is, is this effective?” McCampbell said. “In my view, it is not because the data shows us that.”
Detroit police data shows that juvenile curfew violations are rising in light of the teen takeover trends, said Detroit Police 1st Assistant Chief Franklin Hayes. There is some social media chatter about teen takeovers planned for the Ford Fireworks, he said.
“They’re planning to come over and shut the fireworks down,” Hayes told the council Tuesday. “We can’t have that.”
The fireworks curfew supersedes the city’s regular curfew that runs from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. for juveniles 15 years and under, and from 11 p.m. to 6 p.m. for those aged 16 and 17.
The extended fireworks curfew only applies to downtown and parts of the riverfront. Enforcement will apply in the area bounded by the Detroit River, Third Street, the Lodge Freeway (M-10), Fisher Freeway (Interstate 75), the extension of the Fisher Freeway (I-75) east to Gratiot Avenue, Gratiot Avenue, Vernor Highway, Chene Street, Atwater Street and the Aretha Franklin Amphitheater, according to the ordinance.
laguilar@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit’s expanded teen curfew for Ford Fireworks sparks feisty debate
Reporting by Louis Aguilar, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Louis Aguilar, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
