Lubbock Police Department to begin enforcing juvenile curfew on May 26

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - The Lubbock Police Department will soon begin a city-wide curfew for anyone 16 years of age and under.

Although Lubbock has had a juvenile curfew ordinance before, it has not been prioritized since the 1990s. With a jump in juvenile crimes, both violent and non-violent, police will be directly enforcing that curfew to try and keep kids off the streets and out of jail.

Nathan White, Assistant Chief for the Lubbock Police Department, says, “Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night we are going to have six officers assigned to the plan.”

From midnight to 6 a.m., police will now be patrolling the streets for kids 16 and younger. White says this new curfew is in response to an increase in the number of crimes involving juveniles.

“We have a lot of vehicle burglaries in the city of Lubbock and a lot of suspects in those burglaries are juvenile offenders. Unfortunately, a lot of violent crimes involve juveniles whether they are victims, suspects, or both,” White said.

Many of these crimes occur in the early morning hours. White says if these kids can be brought in prior to committing a crime, it may change the trajectory of their lives.

“We hope it will be helpful in reducing crime and increasing safety; those are the two main things we want to do with this initiative,” said White.

Once a child is taken in, legal guardians will have six hours to pick up the child before the State gets involved.

“Then we are going to contact Child Protective Services and work out a plan with them for them to come to take custody of the child,” White said.

Even if parents do pick up their children in a timely manner, violators won’t get away with just a stern talking to.

“The child will receive a citation when they are brought here, the parents or legal guardian when they come to pick them up will receive a citation, also,” White said.

Owners may be cited if a child is found in a Lubbock business after curfew hours.

“That establishment or manager or owner could receive a citation as well,” White said.

The juvenile curfew will begin on May 26. All violators will be taken to the East Division Station on 19th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

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