Intensified citywide curfew enforcement by Denver Police will begin on Friday April 4, 2008 and run through September 28, 2008. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, youth will be ticketed and taken to the SafeNite Curfew Site located at the Denver Police District One station located at 1311 W. 48th Ave., Denver, CO. Reducing any possible threat of violence by and against youth is the goal of the curfew program. Denver’s Curfew Ordinance requires that youth 17 years of age and younger must be off the street on Friday and Saturday nights before midnight from 12:01 a.m. through 5:00 a.m., and Sunday through Thursday nights, between 11:01 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. Youth can be cited with a municipal violation for violating the curfew ordinance while parent(s) or legal guardian(s) can be cited for allowing youth to violate the ordinance.
Exceptions to the ordinance include:
- Youth who are in a motor vehicle involved in interstate travel.
- Going to or from work without any detour or stop.
- In the custody of and accompanied by an adult, only if the youth has a note, signed by the parent or guardian, dated for that night that clearly states the youth is allowed to be in the company of a specific adult.
- In the company of a parent or legal guardian.
The program is a joint effort between police officers of the Denver Police Department and diversion officers of the Denver Safe City Office. Juveniles who are contacted violating curfew will be transported to the SafeNite Curfew site to be processed and interviewed prior to being released to a parent or guardian. Since the programs inception, over 14,000 juveniles have come through the SafeNite sites. Questions may be referred to Tiffany Vu of the Denver Safe City Office at (720) 913-4619 or Lieutenant Adam Hernandez at (720) 913-6717.