Public Safety Update From Rochester City Leaders Today (07/23)

City of Rochester leaders are scheduled to give an update on public safety initiatives on Thursday, weeks after proposing a curfew for children under 18. Mayor Malik Evans announced plans to create a curfew following a mass shooting on the East End over the Fourth of July weekend. Seven people were shot and one person was stabbed at two separate scenes, one on East Avenue and the other on East Broad Street. All injuries were considered non-life-threatening, and police believe the two scenes were connected.

City leaders have not announced details on what a curfew may look like. As News10NBC has covered, a curfew may face legal challenges. In 2006, City Council adopted a curfew that forbade children under 17 from being in public places past 11 p.m. on weekdays and past midnight on weekends. Two years later, a lower appellate court overturned the curfew. A year later, the State Court of Appeals upheld that ruling, saying the curfew violated the rights of parents.

At his first conference, Mayor Evans says he was calling on the city’s legal team to start looking into the process of a curfew, but couldn’t yet speak about how it will be enforced.

“Late at night, we are seeing unaccompanied minors hanging out in places where they should not be,” Evans said. “12:30 a.m. is too late for a 12-year-old to be hanging out by themselves. And in many instances, younger is a recipe for disaster. It’s a recipe for violence. And it’s a recipe for what we saw.”

The city has added several new public safety initiatives recently, including through the Gun Violence State of Emergency, which gives the mayor “broad powers to protect life and property.” Back in May, Evans announced the city has seen the lowest number of shootings in more than eight years, but said the numbers were still too high and that the Gun Violence State of Emergency will continue.

City leaders say the emergency order has helped them to shut down properties where there’s been a trend of gun violence. Last year, the city issued closure orders for 15 properties. The order has also helped the city to shut down large, unsanctioned parties, which leaders say could turn violent.

However, some businesses have voiced concerns about the city’s actions. Last September, the owners of EZ In Grocery on North Clinton Avenue tried to get a judge to overturn the city’s closure order. According to court documents, the city ordered the store to close after a shooting in the area in June of that year. Also, business owners along North Clinton Avenue took their complaints to Rochester City Council after they were forced to close early on the final day of the 2025 Puerto Rican Festival due to violence concerns.

There have also been some changes to policing, with the Rochester Police Department focusing on areas that have seen violence. Earlier this summer, Rochester Police officers and the Monroe County sheriff’s deputies began stepping up their patrol of Ontario Beach Park after a brawl involving 400 people broke out. Crews have also installed automated security gates at the park to stop people from gathering after it closes at 10 p.m.

In addition, the city’s “special events zone” to improve safety in the East End entertainment district continues. Every Saturday night, RPD puts up barriers on East Avenue from South Union Street to Alexander Street, where no one under 21 is allowed to enter. Evans created the restrictions in September of 2024 in response to several shootings. Some businesses have said the special events zone has made the area safer, but one business, Axes and Ales, said the restrictions caused its sales to tank. Axes and Ales closed last year after six years in business.

Source: WHEC-TV