Miami Beach, Florida has implemented a curfew following two shootings in the vicinity. This is gradually becoming an annual emergency to combat unruly crowds.
Since March 2013, Miami Beach has been implementing emergency measures to combat illegal and dangerous behavior among vacationers. The city manager announced that a curfew would be in effect from Sunday at 11:59 PM to Monday at 6 AM.
Although spring break crowds are associated with this time of year, officials in Miami Beach say that visitors to Miami Beach in recent years have included non-college students.
The city announced that a special commission will meet Monday afternoon to discuss the possibility of enacting similar measures next weekend.
A Miami Beach police officer exits a closed road during spring break on March 24, 2022.
Eva Marie Uzcategui / AFP via Getty Images file
Two shootings that killed two people in Miami Beach occurred over the weekend. Two men were shot to death in the first shooting, which occurred Friday at 10:41 pm.
One man died in a hospital and the other was critically ill. Police confirmed Saturday that a suspect was taken into custody.
Police said that a second shooting took place at 3:29 a.m. on Sunday. This time, it was closer to Ocean Drive and 11th Street. A suspect was arrested and a man was shot to death.
According to police, the shootings seem unrelated and isolated.
Unruly spring break crowds were cited for brawls in March 2021 that required police intervention and led to the first state emergency.
Miami Beach declared its second emergency on the same weekend last March after five people were injured in random shootings. Mayor Dan Gelber described the unacceptable behavior of tourists as “unacceptable.”
Gelber stated that spring break is not something Gelber wanted to see at the news conference last year. “People keep coming to here in large numbers. It creates an almost impossible scenario for our police.
Gelber stated in 2021 that he didn’t believe the influx of tourists was typical of spring break, since the tourists causing problems were not college students typically associated with the vacation week.
He stated that he believed Florida’s lack in Covid-19 restrictions was a significant factor in driving people to the region.
Although Sunday’s emergency order didn’t specifically mention spring break as the source of unruly crowds, it was for the same date and time as the two previous years.
Deliveries of food and essential services will be permitted Sundays after curfew, but businesses must allow their last guests to enter the premises with enough time to allow them to leave before curfew.
According to the order, alcohol sales off-premises will be prohibited in the curfew zone after 6 p.m.
The city advised that anyone who violates the curfew could be arrested and face criminal charges.
