On Wednesday, Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren issued an emergency order banning public gatherings of five or more people between the hours of 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. Police Chief La'Ron Singletary said the move was prompted by a spike in violence, with 70 people injured in shootings since the start of June.
Both cited a large gathering last weekend on North Clinton Avenue, where police struggled to disperse a crowd of several hundred people. While officers were doing this, someone opened fire on the crowd, wounding six people.
Here's what we know about the mayor's order and the level of violence.
Has there been a spike in violence in Rochester?
Yes, and the numbers are stark.
From June 1 to July 16, there were 70 people shot in the city, including eight homicides that involved a firearm. There have been nine separate shooting incidents with multiple gunshot victims. During the same time period last year, there were 40 shootings. A year earlier, the same stretch saw 36 shootings.
The Rochester Police Department's open data portal documents all shooting incidents since 2000. An analysis of that data by the Democrat and Chronicle found that there hasn't been a two-month stretch with this many shootings since June and July of 2006, which saw 74 gunshot victims.
There have been a total of 145 shootings so far in 2020, the highest total for this time period since at least 2000, the earliest date for which data is available. Last year on July 15 there had been just 98 shootings in the city. In 2018, there had been 72 shootings by July 15.
What's causing the spike in Rochester?
Warren said Tuesday that the rise in violence was likely due to several factors.
"I believe it's a combination of hopelessness from job losses, the confinement from the pandemic, and the weariness from the high heat that has driven people to act in fear, hate, and hopelessness," Warren said.
Criminal justice researchers have long observed that crime rates rise during the summer months. But those same experts don't necessarily agree on the causes.
Some have theorized that the warmer temperatures lead to more aggressive behavior and that tempers are more likely to flare when the heat is oppressive. Others suggest that people are simply more likely to be outdoors and engaging in social behavior, creating more opportunities for conflict.
What does the order say?
The applicable section of the emergency order reads as follows:
"[B]etween the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., it shall be unlawful to gather in groups of five or more in a public place in the City of Rochester. For purposes of this clause, a public place includes any outdoor premises or other area that is open to the public, including but not limited to streets, sidewalks, parks, parking lots, vacant lots and any unused or unimproved land."
The order also says:
"[B]etween the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., it shall be unlawful for groups of ten or more unrelated individuals to gather inside of any location or premises unless such a gathering is within premises licensed under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law and operated in compliance with the regulations and rules promulgated by the State Liquor Authority; and it is further."
What do local protesters say?
Hours after Warren announced the ban on late-night gatherings, about 100 people gathered at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park to protest the action.
Thirty of those attendees — adults who challenged the mayor's order and refused to leave the park when directed to do so by Rochester police — were arrested early Thursday, according to Rochester police.
The rally was hosted by Free the People ROC and the Coalition for Black Lives.
The groups, in a statement, said, "the city has shown a complete disregard for Black lives as they continue to criminalize Black and brown for simply existing in their neighborhoods. The community sees that this was never about public health or responding to gun violence, but rather a way to further criminalize Black and brown people instead of addressing the root causes of crime. The people will continue to rise up and challenge the status quo."
A smaller protest occurred Thursday night, but there were no arrests, according to police.
Separately, Iman Abid, regional director for the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the local chapter is investigating the order's constitutionality. Shootings are not solely occurring between the hours of 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., she said. And she raised concern about enforcement, anticipating police will focus on people of color and in predominately minority neighborhoods.
Is Mayor Warren's emergency order legal?
That depends on who you ask.
The city, of course, insists that it will withstand any legal challenge. Others paint the measure as overly broad or off base.
While the mayor stressed this was not an attempt to curtail rallies and demonstrations, the order does effectively prohibit peacefully assembly in public spaces, said Lawrence Kasperek of the Rochester law firm Easton Thompson Kasperek Shiffrin. And that, he said, is a clear violation of the First Amendment.
His firm is representing five of those cited Wednesday — all of whom were "legal advisors," he said, "who were merely monitoring the circumstances, (but were) not part of the demonstration."
"This is the other difficult issue to resolve: How do you determine who is violating the statute as written, and who is merely observing the alleged violation?" Kasperek asked.
More than a decade ago, the city attempted to impose a youth curfew. The courts struck down the measure for limiting free expression in public places during what amounted to one-fourth of each day. Further, the city’s justification was found to be insufficient, as youth crime and violence was mostly a daytime problem.
This time around, the city is not attempting a strict curfew and incorporating the measure into an emergency order aimed at curtailing the spread of COVID-19. The order carves out exceptions for bars and restaurants, which fall under state purview. The city tried to curtail bar hours five years ago, but lost that court battle as well.
City spokesman Justin Roj said the pandemic and recent violence are related. But Scott Forsyth, a lawyer who sometimes advises the local NYCLU chapter, said the exceptions appear problematic: “Isn’t the risk of COVID being passed greater at restaurants and bars than, say, protesting in the street, or people gathering outside on Clinton Avenue?”
“I think there is an imperfect fit between the justification and the means chosen,” Forsythe said, noting Gov. Cuomo has never imposed restrictions based on the hour of day but only location and size of gathering. “I’m not saying it’s an open-and-shut case, but it causes concern from a civil liberties viewpoint.”
Who else supports the mayor?
The mayor's decision has received support from the President of the United Christian Leadership Ministry, the Rev. Lewis Stewart, who said the community could no longer tolerate the rising toll of shooting incidents. Monroe County legislator Ernest Flagler also expressed support for the mayor's measure.
What's happening in other cities?
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown told Spectrum News on Thursday he had no plans to enact a similar ban on late-night gatherings, despite an uptick in violence in his city.
Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh decried large gatherings in his city, including a large party in late June where 9 people were shot. He called on residents to follow guidance already in place about such public gatherings.
"We are in the midst of a global pandemic. We have strict guidance from the Governor's office that limits public gatherings to 25," Walsh told a local TV station. "We know that not everyone is following those rules, but again, there needs to be some personal accountability here."
Includes reporting by staff writer Victoria E. Freile.
Sean Lahman is a watchdog reporter for the Democrat & Chronicle, part of the USA Today Network. Contact him at slahman@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @seanlahman.
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