This editorial appears in the July 2 Yakima Herald-Republic 'Once more unto the breach" is a line from Shakespeare describing a desperate King Henry V who wanted his weary troops to make one more attack against the enemy. The same can be said of Yakima City Councilman Micah Cawley as he seeks, once more, to persuade fellow council members to adopt a curfew as a means of curbing gang violence. Cawley says he will bring this up at next week's council meeting. The refrain of "once more" seems to be permanently affixed to this effort. We can see events unfolding like this: * Once more the council will hear from the police chief that statistics don't support a nighttime curfew. The chief will argue, as he did earlier in the year, that most of the crimes take place from 2 to 8 p.m. * Once more the city's legal staff will ponder weak and weary over the nuances of a city ordinance and conclude that without strong statistics from the police department to support a curfew, any action by the city could make it vulnerable to legal action. * Despite the rising tide against him, Cawley will once more urge his fellow council members to enact an ordinance: "At some point we have to say enough is enough." * And once more a curfew ordinance will be defeated. History does indeed repeat itself when nothing is learned the first time around. We would hope by the third or fourth time, the message would finally sink in. Curfews are not the answer; a comprehensive approach to gang violence is. Several weeks ago, Cawley, who is facing re-election this fall, asked city staff to take another run at a curfew ordinance but with a new twist. It would affect all ages, not just youth, and would be established, not citywide, but within a specified neighborhood. The reason for Cawley's request was a recent spike in violence after a 20-year-old was fatally shot and several others were wounded by gunfire in Yakima's eastside neighborhoods. Presumably this restricted curfew zone would enable statisticians in the police department to better pinpoint the incidences of violence. But it still doesn't address Chief Sam Granato's argument that crime occurs in the early evening, not late at night. Furthermore, shutting down a 10-block area will only inconvenience law-abiding residents and will most likely push criminals and violent gang members to other parts of the city. That doesn't make the situation any better. The City Council has taken furtive jabs at enacting a curfew for the past three years. It's time to move on to more productive discussions -- like how to keep young men and women out of gangs in the first place.   * Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Bob Crider, Spencer Hatton and Karen Troianello.   'Once more unto the breach" is a line from Shakespeare describing a desperate King Henry V who wanted his weary troops to make one more attack against the enemy. The same can be said of Yakima City Councilman Micah Cawley as he seeks, once more, to persua Opinion, LOCAL

2009-06-30T20:42:41Z

2009-07-02T05:24:42Z

false

Get ready for summer rerun of curfew saga 20975 get-ready-for-summer-rerun-of-curfew-saga Web Story

Yakima Herald-Republic

Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board

2009-07-02T05:59:41Z

7079370

07/02/09 On the curfew move in Yakima published Web Daily

2009-07-02T05:59:41Z