Lawsuit filed to pause Chicago’s youth curfew for Halloween

Good Kids Mad City filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the City of Chicago to seek relief from the city’s youth curfew on Halloween so young people with the organization can “cop watch and peacekeep” in Hyde Park on the holiday.

The city’s youth curfew does not allow those under the age of 18 from being on the streets after 10 p.m. Every year on Halloween, Good Kids Mad City holds an event in Hyde Park where members cop watch — observe police activity with the goal of de-escalating and discouraging police misconduct — and conduct outreach to young people. According to the lawsuit, members are concerned officers will arrest and harass them during their event.

[ Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s earlier curfew for teens enacted by a skeptical Chicago City Council ]

Since City Council amended the youth curfew in May, the police department has increased enforcement by at least 57% compared to enforcement last year, according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit also argues that the enforcement is targeted in Black and brown neighborhoods, which is the base of Good Kids Mad City’s operations.

The lawsuit said that it seeks a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that would prevent police from enforcing the youth curfew against the activists who engage in “nontraditional First Amendment activities.”

The lawsuit also asks that the police department will inform all officers during roll call that they are prohibited from enforcing the curfew against the youth participating in these actions.

Good Kids Mad City’s peacekeeping and cop watching activities often occur during curfew hours because that is when members believe it has the most impact, according to the lawsuit.

“This is particularly true on Halloween, when both young people and police are particularly active after the curfew hours. Because GKMC’s cop watching and peacekeeping activities must occur during curfew hours, there are no alternative channels for this expression,” according to the lawsuit.

A spokeswoman for the city’s law department has not yet responded to a request for comment.

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pfry@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @paigexfry