VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Virginia Beach City Council is voting Thursday on whether to impose a 9 p.m. curfew in the area for the remaining Fridays and Saturdays in April following another violent weekend that left eight people hurt from a shooting.
The curfew would apply to everyone — not just minors, like the imminent threat curfew instituted last month that followed another Saturday night shooting.
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The curfew was proposed at a closed-door meeting on Tuesday afternoon and first reported by WTKR Virginia Beach reporter John Hood.
Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate argued in favor of the curfew during a city council special work session held on Thursday. He claimed that the shootings still occured despite officers being visibly present around the Oceanfront.
"If we wait for a fatality, we have already failed. Oceanfront should be a sanctuary, it shouldn't be a hunting ground," Neudigate said. "It's not about restriction, it's about survival."
The curfew would include areas from Rudee Loop to 31st Street, with exceptions for diners, hotel guests or attendees of other designated events in the area.
“If you have a hotel room, if you’re leaving a restaurant going home, if you’re coming from an event going someplace — it’s again limited to the geographic area,” Councilman Worth Remick previously told News 3. “It starts at 9 p.m., but there’s a lot of exceptions. It’s not blanket-wide.”
Watch previous coverage: Oceanfront businesses concerned as VB city leaders weigh 9 p.m. curfew
Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer previously said some "tough love" would need to be adopted to curb crime at the Oceanfront. He made this comment during a press conference held on Monday to address the shooting at the Oceanfront on April 11.
“The time is now for us to act, and we must act together. We must build the bridges that we need with the various entities that will put this together. It’s a national problem, it’s a local problem,” Mayor Bobby Dyer said during the press conference held Monday.
During the city council work session on Thursday, Neudigate confirmed a third arrest has been made in connection with the April 11 Oceanfront shooting. Details on this suspect were not shared during the meeting. 18-year-old Jamya Williams was arrested after being found shot, and 18-year-old Isaiah Charity, who is from Richmond, turned himself in.
Watch previous coverage: Virginia Beach city leaders examine what can be done after Oceanfront shooting
An “imminent threat” curfew for minors from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. has already been implemented for a portion of the Oceanfront.
The stricter Oceanfront curfew was enacted in response to a shooting during the first weekend of March that left six people injured.
On Wednesday, News 3 spoke with Oceanfront businesses to gauge their reaction to the all-age 9 p.m. curfew when it was just a proposal.
“If they’re going to the Sportsplex and they have an event with their kids all day, they’re going to go to dinner and after dinner they walk around and shop,” Amanda Marano, of Karma Skate Shop, said on Wednesday. “Closing at 9 p.m. doesn’t allow that shopping experience for those families, and it kind of worries me that they’re going to see police on the corners and maybe it will deter them from coming back to Virginia Beach.”
Marano said she has already noticed changes in customer behavior since the city implemented a 7 p.m. curfew for those under age 18 — a restriction that would remain in place if the new curfew is approved.
“I think it definitely does deter people from being out after that because they do think that maybe there’s a reason that curfew is in and maybe their safety is jeopardized,” she said.
