A youth curfew aimed at reducing violent crime within the Gila River Indian Community has been in place since late February, but the tribe announced on Thursday it will now be in effect through the end of this year.
It marks the fourth time the curfew has been extended. In this latest executive order, Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis wrote that the tribe south of Phoenix saw a decline in crime between June and August.
But concerns over threats to public safety still remain, with Lewis adding that “emergency action gives us stronger, more flexible tools to prevent violence and disorder before it starts.”
Leaders are even considering banishment as a solution.
The Valley-based tribe is surveying its membership about a draft ordinance to banish its own members who are convicted of committing violent crimes on the nearly 600-square-mile reservation.
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