Law Enforcement Report Large Rally Crowds | Local News

Merwin said he and his team were already tired of the work they put in before and at the start of the rally.

“There are more people than I’ve ever seen here, and I’ve been doing it for 40 years,” Merwin said.

Sturgis Police Chief Geody VanDewater confirmed his department had 215 calls ahead of last year. He attributes this to the city allowing containers to open in the downtown corridor during the nine days of the Rally.

“We have given 205 verbal warnings for open container violations,” VanDewater said. Those numbers reflect the period from 6 a.m. on Friday to 6 a.m. on Saturday, he said.

VanDewater said he and his department are working to educate rally enthusiasts about the Open Container Ordinance, in particular that only official rally event cups can be used for the open container in open containers. city ​​streets. Many think that bottles, cans or even red plastic cups are enough in the city center.

“A lot of those in attendance heard ‘open container’, but they didn’t hear ‘event cup’,” VanDewater said.

Those who were told they were violating the city’s open container ordinance were surprised, he said.

“Everyone has been great. A lot of them say, ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t know that.’ Either they throw it away or they go back to the establishment. Very few were confrontational, ”said VanDewater.

The police department‘s daily report shows that two people were arrested for open container.

“We’re working on education and trying to let people know the finer details that the open container is for the event mug, and that it’s just beer and wine,” said VanDewater. “We are also working on modifying certain road signs. Our overall goal is to educate people so that we don’t have violations.

Sturgis City Council approved a one-year open container resolution in May allowing the consumption of beer and wine in official tumblers in an area covering about 24 city blocks of downtown Sturgis. The open container area stretches from the Sturgis Vets Club in the east to the Sturgis Community Center in the west, and from Sherman Street in the south to Dudley Street in the north for nine days of the rally.

According to the resolution, open containers are allowed from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. every day.

The money collected through the sale of cups will be placed in an endowment by the city. Interest from this fund would be donated annually to the Sturgis Rally Charities Foundation for distribution to local nonprofits.

Sturgis City Manager Daniel Ainslie said on Saturday that the city had ordered and received around 120,000 event cups. The city retained some of the mugs, but much of it was sold to local bars and other retail outlets. The city and most retailers sell the cups for $ 10.

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