The Nation - News from March 1, 1989

The District of Columbia Council, in a new attack on drug-related crime in the nation’s capital, voted to bar many teen-agers from congregating on street corners and other public areas late at night and early in the morning. But it refused to act immediately on Mayor Marion Barry’s proposed emergency city legislation to create a mandatory five-year prison term for anyone using guns to commit crimes. The council approved a curfew that would bar those under 18 from gathering in public areas between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and from midnight to 6 a.m. Friday and Saturday. Parents of a curfew violator would face no penalty in a first offense but would pay $100 if there is a second offense, $200 for a third one and $500 for additional violations.