Earlier in the week Mike Spence, our faithful LA County FR correspondent, posted some critcism of legislation recently passed in Sacramento (with the support of a good chunk of GOPers) that would ban alcohol on boats in the Sacramento River (whether the cans are open or closed).   You can read Mike’s post here.

FR has receieved a ‘response’ to Spence’s post from Sacramento County Sheriff  Jon McGinnis, which appears below.  It’s a bit lengthy compared to Spence’s — but then, McGinnis is an elected official, and seldom is brevity the watchword of any politican…

For several years the frequency of alcohol-related violence and lawlessness has increased within a specific segment of the American River Parkway during major summer holiday periods.  During the holiday periods of the Fourth of July and to a lesser extent, Memorial Day and Labor Day, thousands of young rafters converge on this stretch of the American River.  Enticed by Internet chatter calling for a “Mardi Gras” on the river, college-aged rafters appear in mass, prepared for a day of drinking and floating upon the water.  In 2006 the crowd was estimated at 10,000 rafters on the Fourth of July alone.

The rafters typically enter the river at the Lower Sunrise Park and exit at Goethe Park, a distance of approximately 6 miles.  Dependent upon the flow rate of the river the trip typically takes 3-4 hours.  Rafters delay the progress however by stopping at a number of suitable locations along the way and partake heavily in alcohol.  The quantity of alcohol consumed by the rafters is staggering.  The resulting level of intoxicated rafters quickly and routinely results in a volatile situation that has led to large-scale fights, violent assaults, weapons violations, public intoxication to the point of unconsciousness, serious medical emergencies and rescue situations, and other less-serious alcohol related disorderly conduct.

This violent and disorderly alcohol-related conduct has resulted in an annual expenditure of public funds to provide public safety personnel from local law enforcement, including the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, the Rancho Cordova Police Department, the Sacramento County Park District, as wells as local fire rescue personnel to the event.  In 2006, over 50 sworn law enforcement personnel were dedicated to this stretch of the American River to respond to the multitude of calls for service relative to the alcohol related incidents on the river.  In 2006, as in the prior years, officers responded to over 50 law enforcement related incidents during the Fourth of July weekend.  Calls included 25 physical fights, 12 alcohol related disturbances and 5 calls to assist fire personnel involved with combative or intoxicated subjects.  Officers also responded to a multiple-fatal car accident that was directly related to this situation.  The cost to the county general fund exceeded $50,000 for law enforcement services directly related to American River disorderly conduct for the Fourth of July holiday period alone.

A Sacramento County ordinance has been enacted to address alcohol consumption along the shores of the American River, in this specific segment of the river, and on specified holidays.  This ordinance allows officers to address and prevent public intoxication on the river banks but does not afford officers the opportunity to prevent the wide spread incidents of public intoxication and resulting violent behavior on the waterway.  The rafters realize that current state law allows them to transport unlimited quantities of unopened alcoholic containers onto the water – and they do; by the case load, raft load and by the keg.  Once on the water they partake freely and often to excess.  Officers are unable to intervene until serious events unfold, at which time they endanger themselves and other by wading into the crowd to rescue those in need or to arrest a violent offender.

It is the opinion of the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department, and other local law enforcement agencies, that AB951 is a prudent bill that will assist public safety officials in preventing a reoccurrence of similar wide-spread disorderly conduct.  This is a public safety issue of serious magnitude and deserving of attention by the legislative body.

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 21st, 2007 at 12:00 am and is filed under Blog Posts.