- December 13, 2025
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If they’re under 16 and unaccompanied, children living in unincorporated Manatee County are now subject to a curfew.
Commissioners voted 5-2 to approve the measure at the Nov. 19 commission meeting with commissioners George Kruse and Mike Rahn voting against the idea.
If out in public during school hours, past 11 p.m. on school nights or midnight on weekends and legal holidays, the curfew authorizes the Manatee County Sheriff's Office to take anyone under 16 into custody, though curfew breaking is not a criminal offense.
However, Sheriff Rick Wells said that is not the aim of the ordinance.
“We’re not trying to penalize kids,” he said. “We’re trying to make sure that they’re safe.”
The sheriff noted that children are vulnerable to becoming victims of crime, especially at night.
Warnings will be issued upon the first violation. From there, issuing a citation is left up to the deputy’s discretion.
If cited, the civil infraction will bring a $50 fine. If the child’s parents “knowingly permitted” the minor to break the curfew, they will also incur a fine of $50 per violation.
Lakewood Ranch mother of four Kaity Smyth said the measure “screams authoritarianism and anti-parental rights.”
“Weren’t you elected on the premise of limiting government overreach and being fiscally conservative and backing parental rights,” she asked commissioners.
Her wife, Tsi Smyth, told a story from when she was a teenager growing up in Lakewood Ranch. A friend died in a car crash, so she walked to Greenbrook Adventure Park “to look at the stars and digest.” An officer asked what she was doing, then left her alone to process her grief.
The Smyths say they fear their children will now be harassed for merely “existing” and that some of their children’s friends will be harassed because of their skin color.
“Even in Lakewood Ranch, there’s a profiling issue,” Tsi Smyth said. “Because there might not be as many people of color, they’re much more targeted. It’s going to be unsafe, and these are our kids’ friends. These are our neighbors.”
Commissioner Tal Siddique had similar concerns for his district, which includes neighborhoods in Palmetto and West Bradenton where there is a high concentration of Black and Latino communities.
“The relationship with law enforcement here is better than, perhaps, most (places),” he said, “But those families and kids do worry about being singled out.”
The curfew’s counterpart to preventing teens from falling victim to crimes is preventing teens from committing crimes, such as vandalism, property damage and theft.
Tracey Washington, president of the Manatee County NAACP, is not opposed to the curfew but she noted a lack of Town Hall discussions prior to the vote and told commissioners that she’ll be watching for any problems.
“What happens when they so-called resist,” she asked. “That’s the excuse we’re going to hear when something happens to one of them — they resisted.”
One of the main differences between a criminal and civil infraction revolves around the kind of questioning a deputy can conduct.
Custodial interviews are conducted at a police station or when a suspect is handcuffed. They’re interrogations where the suspect could incriminate themselves, so they have to be read their Miranda rights.
A noncustodial interview is a voluntary conversation with law enforcement.
“Because this is not an enforceable law, the best we can do to combat it is to not go along with it.” Tsi Smyth said. “I’m going to tell (my kids and their friends) to tell the police that they don’t want to talk to them and walk away.”
The ordinance only gives law enforcement the right to stop a child that is suspected to be under the age of 16 years old and ask who they are and what they’re doing. Wells confirmed that children have the right to decline speaking with police if stopped for a suspected curfew violation.
Kruse expanded on Washington’s sentiments with examples of kids not wanting to turn over their identifications or the police pulling over a 16-year-old who is found to be doing something wrong but was stopped over a curfew that didn’t apply to them.
He called the measure “a solution looking for a problem” and “a slippery slope that’s going to have more unintended consequences than positive benefits.”
Commissioner Jason Bearden said Kruse’s comments were “the definition of anarchy.”
“Why can’t kids go out and smoke cigarettes until they’re 18?” Bearden asked rhetorically. “Maybe because it’s unhealthy and it’s unsafe for a child to smoke cigarettes or do tobacco.”
Bearden shared his own history of chewing tobacco underage and said the law made it more difficult to access tobacco.
He also grew up under a curfew and said it deterred him from staying out too late because he didn’t want to get in trouble with his parents or get suspended from sports.
He said the action was for the safety and welfare of children, who simply do not have the same rights as adults.
“We all want our kids to be safe,” said Tsi Smyth. “But there are parental rights in this state. It should be up to me and their mom to make that choice (of when they’re allowed to go out), not the government.”
The curfew went into effect for unincorporated Manatee County immediately upon approval of the ordinance. The city of Bradenton already had a curfew; the other municipalities, such as Anna Maria Island, would have to enact their own ordinance.
Chief of Police Josh Kramer said the city of Bradenton doesn’t enforce the curfew “rigorously,” but called it a tool in their toolbox. He also noted that it was difficult to be the only area in the county with a curfew. He hopes the other municipalities will follow suit.
“It’s a public safety issue,” Commissioner Bob McCann said. “It has nothing to do with overriding parental rights. It actually gives the parents the stronger right to tell your kids they need to be home.”
There are several exceptions to the curfew, including traveling to and from sports, employment, school events and theme parks. Children can also be accompanied by their parents or adults who have their parents’ permission.
Deputy John Murrell shared stories from his 40-year law enforcement career in Manatee County to demonstrate the positives that could come from a curfew.
A couple of kids getting into a car crash after leading deputies on a chase at 4 a.m. is an experience that stays with him. The driver’s brother was killed, and Murrell was assigned to escort him to the funeral.
“He was very emotional, and this young man was not a bad kid — not bad at all,” he said. “He made a bad choice that night with his brother and some friends.”
Murrell wonders if a curfew had been in place, if law enforcement could have talked with those kids and returned them home before tragedy struck.
He also shared a more recent interaction he had with a couple of elementary school students. An 8-year-old named Hudson wasn’t scared of the police, but his 5-year-old sister was until she met Murrell.
Both siblings drew pictures for Murrell that thanked him for keeping them safe.
“When we talk about this curfew, the engagement that officers will have, sometimes it’s not negative,” Murrell said. “It could be a very positive contact.”
