The city of Miami Beach declared a state of emergency and implemented a midnight curfew Sunday night following two fatal shootings on Ocean Drive over the weekend. The area of the curfew includes all of South Beach, bounded by 23rd Street and Dade Boulevard to the north, Government Cut to the south, Biscayne Bay to the west, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, including Ocean Drive and other party strips in the city’s entertainment district.
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City Manager Alina Hudak issued the order after a fatal shooting around 3:30 a.m. Sunday on Ocean Drive near 11th Street. City officials initially declined to impose a curfew after one person was killed and another wounded in a shooting Friday night around 10:30 p.m. on Ocean Drive but changed course after the second shooting Sunday.
The curfew will take effect Sunday night into Monday, with violators potentially facing arrest. Hotels can remain open after curfew but only to serve their own guests, while restaurants can remain open for delivery only and takeout is prohibited. The curfew doesn’t apply to emergency services, those going to and from work, and residents and hotel guests requiring access to their homes and hotels.
Mayor Dan Gelber released a video message shortly after the curfew was announced, saying that while the police had been “literally seconds away” from the incidents, “even an unprecedented police presence could not prevent these incidents from occurring.” He also said that the city’s daytime programming has helped with crowd control and that daytime incidents and arrests are down from last year.
The city’s “Art on the Drive” event, which has shut down Ocean Drive to cars from Fifth to 13th streets this weekend, is expected to end around 6 p.m. Sunday to allow police and city officials to prepare for the curfew. The sale of alcohol for off-premises consumption will also be banned after 6 p.m.
The decision mirrors what happened during spring break last year when Miami Beach declared a midnight curfew in South Beach after two shooting incidents on Ocean Drive injured five people over the third weekend in March. This year, the city declared an 8 p.m. curfew and also shut down major causeways to prevent people from crossing into Miami Beach, although this is not being done this year due to concerns about its legality.
The decision to impose a curfew and the police response has been controversial in the past. Last year, police used SWAT teams and pepper-spray bullets to try to clear Ocean Drive and control crowds after curfew, prompting criticism and allegations of racism. Bobby Hernandez, president of the Miami Beach Fraternal Order of Police, said the union supports the curfew but wishes it had been imposed before this weekend began.
