ATLANTA — Atlanta city leaders have been working to curb the crime involving for youth for months, and now there's a renewed push to change the city's curfew for kids 17 and under.
"As a stopgap measure to save the lives of family members and our neighbors until we develop a solution, we must move quickly to protect the lives of our most vulnerable populations," Atlanta City Councilmember Keisha Sean Waites, said.
Her recommendations is for the city to institute a mandatory curfew of 7 p.m. for those 17 years old and young, adding "given the recent shootings and reports in high-traffic retail spaces, this stopgap measure will save lives."
Waites' effort follows the death of 12-year-old Zyion Charles, who was shot and killed near Atlantic Station Saturday night.
Councilmember Waites said talks to further tighten the city's existing curfew for teens were already in the works, but Charles' death makes the call for change more urgent.
"I think the goal is how we move forward and what steps are we going to take to ensure Zyion's loss is not in vain," she told 11Alive News. "It's my hope and prayer that the city will move forward, and the county will move forward, and we will partner with other sister agencies to protect the public at large."
The legislation will also require any location that has experienced historical patterns of violence, multiple incidents, or homicides to integrate commercial grade cameras into the Atlanta Police Department's Video Integration Center (VIC), which is a high-tech operation that enables 9-1-1 operators to access the cameras.
Atlantic Station is already joining that effort, according to remarks by Atlanta Police Department at Monday's committee meeting.
Councilmember Waites hopes the curfew plan will provide a quick solution as city leaders look for a more permanent plan to combat gun violence, much of which she said is due to wealth and social disparities, as well as a lack of resources.
"Following the recent tragic death of a 12-year-old youth and the wounding of five others after a shooting at Atlantic Station over the holiday weekend and as our city closes in on 150 murders in the past 11 months, this senseless death of 12-year-old Zyion Charles has placed an exclamation point on the citywide cry for help," the councilmember explained. "I believe that much of the violence in our city is a result of unmet needs, including lack of affordable housing, inadequate access to mental health services, and low-paying wages."
In conjunction to the legislation, Waites added that she plans to reach out to local shopping centers, malls, and other locations where large groups of youth typically gather without supervision, to partner in enforcing a new curfew.
The legislation is expected to be introduced next Monday at the Atlanta City Council meeting and is set to include exceptions for working or unsheltered teens.