When officials in Newark noted a recent increase in violent crime in their city, they were especially concerned about teenagers, both as perpetrators and as victims. They turned to an old-fashioned idea to keep young people out of trouble: an overnight curfew that had been on the books since 1992 but had gone largely unenforced. “Necessity is the mother of invention,” Mayor Ras J. Baraka said in a recent interview. “The things we do in Newark are sometimes because we don’t have a choice. After school lets out for the summer, it will be enforced on weeknights, too.

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Persons: Ras J, Baraka Locations: Newark