Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Bronx DA Will Toss More Than 300 Summonses Issued To Protesters For Violating De Blasio's Curfew
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Sep 1, 2020
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
C.S. Muncy / Gothamist
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Sep 1, 2020
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
On June 4th, NYPD officers arrested hundreds of New Yorkers peacefully protesting in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, beating them with batons and bicycles. For the vast majority of those arrested, their alleged crime was violating the 8 p.m. curfew set by Mayor Bill de Blasio after days of unrest and protests against racist police violence. On Tuesday, Bronx Country District Attorney Darcel Clark announced that she would move to dismiss more than 300 of the curfew summonses issued that night.
“I believe in and encourage our Bronx residents to raise their voices to protest social and racial injustice in a peaceful way. I said back in June that I would not prosecute protestors simply for violating the curfew," Clark said in a statement. "As the COVID-19 virus is still very much with us, and the courts are trying to limit in-person appearances, I believe it serves no purpose to summon hundreds of people to the courthouse for low-level violations. These unprecedented times require prosecutors to be flexible as well as compassionate.”
A spokesperson for Clark's office, Patrice O'Shaughnessy, clarified that the dismissal, which will be filed on September 3rd, only applies to the 312 curfew arrests made on June 4th because "June 4th was the only night the Bronx had mass arrests for curfew violations resulting in summonses." O'Shaughnessy said that Clark's office will continue to prosecute arrests for burglary, looting, and assault related to the looting that occurred on Fordham Road on June 1.
In June, Gothamist/WNYC reported that 1,349 people were issued summonses for violating the 8 p.m. curfew, a class B Misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500 and as much as three months in jail or both, according to New York State penal code.
Almost half of those charged with a curfew violation were Black, according to data from the NYPD.
In addition to curfew violations, the NYPD made 1,126 arrests across charges from burglary to unlawful assembly between May 28th and June 7th. All but 39 of those arrests and detentions were for non-violent offenses.
While some of the city's district attorneys have pledged to not prosecute low-level offenses related to the protests, like unlawful assembly, none have proactively intervened to stop curfew violations in this way. District Attorneys have long-standing policies of not intervening in summons court, where curfew violations are processed.
"That's what makes Darcel Clark's statement that she's stepping up and saying, 'I'm gonna take responsibility for these summonses,' so significant," said Martin Stolar, a longtime civil rights attorney who is working with the National Lawyers Guild's New York City Chapter to represent protesters arrested during this summer's demonstrations. "We would like to see the same thing from Mr. Vance and Mr. Gonzalez," Stolar said, referring to Cyrus Vance Jr. and Eric Gonzalez, the Manhattan and Brooklyn DAs.
A spokesperson for Gonzalez has not returned our request for comment.
Danny Frost, a spokesperson for Vance's office, insisted that they had been working with the Office of Court Administration to ensure that curfew violations, as well as charges like disorderly conduct and blocking a roadway, are being dismissed, but could not provide a number for how many curfew charges have been tossed out so far.
A spokesperson for the court system, Lucian Chalfen, said that there were "thousands" of curfew violations across the five boroughs, and could not give a specific number for how many are still pending or have been dismissed.
"They are in the process of being judicially reviewed by a judge and—in the interest of justice—are on a rolling basis, being dismissed and sealed with the defendant’s being notified," Chalfen wrote in an email.
Stolar said that many of his clients were arrested in a similar fashion to those detained in the Bronx: kettled by NYPD officers who gave them no choice to disperse before being arrested.
"It was poorly enforced, it was poorly conceived," Stolar said.
In July, Mayor Bill de Blasio said it was "simplistic" to suggest those arrested and charged for violating his curfew should have their cases dismissed.
The Mayor's Office did not respond to a request for comment.
"In my opinion it was a violation of our civil liberties and meant to simply quell dissent through the utilization of the police state," one protester, who was kettled and arrested on June 4 in the Bronx, said of the curfew.
The protester, who asked us to withhold their name because they work for the de Blasio administration, said they and other New Yorkers took to the streets because "this nation needs to reckon with its history of racism and its history of racial oppression, particularly through law enforcement and the prison industrial complex and the police state." They were also arrested for violating the curfew in Manhattan, and that case is still pending.
"So many people were arrested simply expressing their dissent, peacefully protesting, which is their right, their civil liberty," the protester said. "The arrests are much more criminal than the actions that we committed."
Tagged
darcel clark
curfew
bronx da
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Gatorade recall affects drinks sold in New York and New Jersey
More than 122,000 cases are being recalled over undeclared food dyes.
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Oct 5, 2026 at 4:36 p.m. ET
Gov. Hochul declares upstate NY measles outbreak a ‘disaster emergency’
The declaration is driven by rising case counts in rural areas and in neighboring Pennsylvania.
By
Caroline Lewis
News
Gov. Hochul declares upstate NY measles outbreak a ‘disaster emergency’
The declaration is driven by rising case counts in rural areas and in neighboring Pennsylvania.
By
Caroline Lewis
NYPD detective forced to retire after false statements in Brooklyn investigation
By
Charles Lane
Mamdani faces pressure to forge ahead with plan to fix polluting South Bronx market
By
Elizabeth Kim
Dominican man who shot border patrol officer in NYC sentenced to 15 years in prison
By
Samantha Max
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .