Lafayette, LA Curfew Laws: Juvenile Curfew (2026)

§ 62-89 defines a 'minor' as anyone under 17 who hasn't been emancipated under Louisiana law, and a 'public place' broadly, streets, sidewalks, parks, playgrounds, and any establishment open to the public. Eight built-in exceptions keep the law from snaring kids doing ordinary things: being accompanied by a custodian, running an errand for a custodian by direct route, traveling interstate, working a job (or going to/from it) on a parent's direction, responding to an emergency, standing on the sidewalk in front of their own or a next-door neighbor's home absent a neighbor complaint, attending a supervised school, religious, or city-sponsored recreational activity, or exercising First Amendment rights.

Enforcement escalates. A first violation by a minor draws only a written warning describing the conduct and the consequences of a repeat offense; the custodian gets the same notice. A second violation within 24 months turns the minor into an adjudicated delinquent under the Louisiana Children's Code, with a court able to impose up to 30 hours of community service or transfer custody to the Department of Youth Services and Corrections for up to 90 days. A custodian's second violation in that same 24-month window is itself a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $50 to $500 plus up to 30 hours of community service, unless the custodian proves to the court's satisfaction that they exercised reasonable diligence to stop the violation, in which case only the minor can be penalized.