KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The City of Independence announced Monday that a new curfew for anyone under the age of 18 will be put in place in the area surrounding Independence Center.
Officials cited multiple incidents where large crowds of juveniles have caused problems at businesses and injury to people that required law enforcement to draw resources away from other parts of the city, or even call in extra resources from surrounding areas.
One such incident involved roughly 300 juveniles at the mall just last month.
"The incident shut down the business, caused property damage, including damage to a police vehicle. Minors moved to area restaurants taking food from servers and off patron’s tables," officials said of the incident. "In 2019, another disturbance within several businesses in this district cumulated with the shooting of an unaccompanied minor by a fellow minor in the parking lot. This year we have already seen an uptick in similar incidents and we hope to drastically reduce them during this holiday shopping season to keep the area safe for everyone."
The curfew will begin on Nov. 27 and lasts from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. It will be enforced by citation.
The perimeter of the area under the curfew includes U.S. 40 to the south, 39th Street to the north, Little Blue Parkway to the east and Missouri 291 to the west. It also includes all businesses accessed by Bass Pro Drive.
Officials said the curfew covers public streets, public grounds, public buildings, amusement places, dining places, vacant places and shopping places. There will be an increased police presence in the area to begin enforcing the curfew.
Exceptions can be made for minors traveling home from a school activity or work, or if they have been given an "emergency errand" by their parent or guardian.
Independence also plans to improve street lighting in the curfew area for safety reasons.
