Blarney Blowout Repercussions

 Blarney Blowout:  2 of 53 arrestees

The justice system is methodically sorting out the 53 arrestees at the infamous Blarney Blowout, with a major offender striking a deal  last week and another one making an appearance on Wednesday for a pre trial hearing that I'm told will be disposed of on June 9 with a plea deal.

Since the six charges include both Misdemeanors and Felonies it will be interesting to see what the Judge decides.  Hopefully the $160,000 study/report from former Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis will be available by then as well.

At the very least I hope the consultants have requested copies of all 53 "Statement of Facts" from the APD arrests on that deleterious day.

Stephen Gage, 20, acted as a ringleader, firing up a huge throng of students to assault highly outnumbered Amherst and UMass police officers with "rocks, ice chunks, beer bottles and beer cans."

Also notice that indeed pepper spray was used on Mr. Gage, but only to subdue him as he struggled with officers while resisting arrest.

Yes, the problem with Blarney Blowout (or Hobart Hoedown) is you get a huge crowd of 1,000s of hyped up students -- most of them under the influence of alcohol -- and then it only takes a few "agitators" like Stephen Gage to create a major riot.

Of course when Mr. Gage appears before the Judge on June 9 he will be standing with only his (expensive) attorney.

   Blarney Blowout Stephen Gage

Blarney Blowout Surcharge?

Blarney Blowout confrontation near Pi Kappa Alpha frathouse

In Eastern Hampshire District Court on Monday one of the more egregious Blarney Blowout arrestees, Zach Bodine, age 23,  came before Judge Payne for a, hopefully, final disposition plea deal.

 Zach Bodine, age 23

The prosecution read the charges to the Judge as though the case were going to trial:  Mr Bodine was arrested at the "infamous Blarney Blowout" at the scene of the largest confrontation in and around Pike frathouse on the corner of North Pleasant and Fearing Street.

After police had given an order to disperse they came under fire from projectiles including cans and bottles, some of them launched from a 3rd floor balcony. 

Mr. Bodine, who was intoxicated at the time, was given a direct order to disperse which he responded to by challenging the officers and then getting into a physical wresting match.  He lost.

His court appointed attorney told Judge Payne the facts presented by the prosecution were indeed "egregious," but they represented an uncharacteristic, "once in a lifetime incident."

Mr. Bodine had been a UMass student majoring in Physics (with a 3.2 GPA) and worked as a PVTA driver, but dropped out last winter.

He would like to return to UMass and finish up his degree.

Judge Payne first asked the prosecution if the town and officers involved were aware of the settlement agreement?  The ADA responded, "Yes".

The Judge then handed down the sentence:  Six months probation with all charges continued without a finding, $50/month probation fee, 40 hours community service, no alcohol during probation period, and finally a $200 "restitution fee" paid to the town for police reimbursement.

Should Judge Payne institute that restitution fee on all 53 Blarney Blowout arrestees it would go a long way towards covering the $13,000 in overtime costs incurred by the APD that ignoble day.  

Blarney Blowout: Standing Firm

Enku Gelaye, Chancellor Subbaswamy, VC John Kennedy

The day of the Blarney Blowout 4,000+ students took to the streets of Amherst with alcohol as motivation to do no good.  Enough of them indulged their demons to where the vastly outnumbered Amherst Police Department had no choice but to intervene.  And intervene they did.

On March 11, about 100 students held a protest march from the Student Union to Whitmore to underscore their demand that APD apologize for using sterner methods than saying "pretty please" to disperse the unruly crowds.

Today Enku Gelaye on her first day as permanent VC for Student Affairs, Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy and VC for University Relations John Kennedy sat before a crowd of about 60 students for a "public accountability" forum.

 Thousands were invited, few showed up

One student noted the lack of turnout for the event and then proceeded to talk about a prior incident of police brutality when he was arrested for Driving Under the Influence.  Not a great way to gain sympathy.

Another student clearly and succinctly stated, "Students like to get drunk."  He too was not a paragon of potential solutions.  

The Amherst Police apology demand never even came up, and a good portion of the talk about rough police treatment centered on UMPD response during the Red Sox Riot last October and the failed attempt of having a University sanctioned event at Southwest that night.  Which of course went very well right up until the moment the game ended and then quickly degraded into a riot.

UMass Chancellor Subbaswamy did not back down, or even so much as blink, from his stern condemnation issued the day after the Blarney Blowout.  

The Chancellor reminded the group that UMPD is under his direct control but Amherst Police are not.  And they had to make instant decisions, on the ground, without the luxury of time to call him or his staff for consultation.

But he reaffirmed how Amherst town officials are in favor of the extensive study (led by Edward Davis) commissioned by the University which should be completed in two months.   With an action plan that both the University and the town are now sorely motivated to make happen. 

Before the next Blarney Blowout, or whatever new juvenile name they come up with.

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Neverending Blarney

So the national media has its missing Malaysian Airlines flight 370 obsession while our local hometown newspaper has its Blarney Blowout preoccupation, as here we are exactly two weeks from the day and it is still a banner front page above the fold story -- with fancy graphics no less.  Yikes!

And it made the AP national wire.  

They're STILL talking about #BlarneyBlowout ?? Damn people (on both sides) it was a party, cops busted it, end of story. Let's move on.
— Spencer Lockhart (@SpencerLock) March 17, 2014

Meanwhile, the Gazette sent a reporter last night to cover what one town official described as an "intense meeting to address horrible racist incident against teacher in #AmherstMA schools" and it didn't make it into today's print edition as a stand alone article.

 Meeting last night at Jones Library  in response to latest school incident

Meanwhile, Ch 40 is reporting -- using a lone High School Junior as a source -- contents of the note:  "f you Ms. Gardner" followed by the "n-word".   So what I'm trying to confirm is which version of the n-word was it -- the five letter version that ends in A or the six letter version that ends in R?

Because after the incident six weeks ago, it apparently does make a difference.  

Was the "f" word actually spelled out or did they write it like that?  Was the message etched on a wall, mirror or bathroom stall in traditional graffiti style, or was it a note written on paper?  If so was it printed letters or cursive writing, and did they use pen, pencil, crayon or print out from a computer?

And how exactly did that young lady know the content of the note/graffiti?  Did she get it from a classmate or school officials?  Obviously APD did not release anything and school officials surely should not have.  So if she got if from a classmate, then follow it back to the original source. 

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All Blarney All Of The Time

A week later and Blarney Blowout is still front page news

So now its been a tad over a week and the ignominious day of debauchery known as Blarney Blowout is still in the news.

The entire above the fold section of the weekend Gazette; and the print edition of today's Sunday Springfield Republican also has a guest column from UMass Student Government Association President Zac Broughton branding the actions of Amherst police "inexcusable."

Of course he cites snippets of video posted to the juvenile party-all-the-time website barstoolsports who said last's year's blowout, "looked like fun."  Tellingly their support of this year's disaster has been less cheerleader-like, other than posting those videos.

Zac also asks why UMass has not come up with "alternative programming options" to preoccupy the kids.  Of course his Student Government Association was co-sponsor of just such an event on campus last October on the night of the Red Sox World Series win and, umm, that "programming option" turned into a riot.

The simple fact of the matter is students congregated into an overwhelmingly large mass, most of them under the influence of alcohol.   The disorderly crowd started throwing snowballs, bottles and cans along with other acts of vandalism, giving police no choice but to do their job:  protect public safety.

Amherst Police Department will soon be issuing video from that day on their blog.  Since their photographer was standing next to me, at one point I heard him get hit in the leg with an object thrown from the crowd, so I'm betting the video he took will be telling.

I hope they release the combat footage tomorrow -- as Monday is the start of the news cycle, and the Amherst Select Board is scheduled to discuss the Blarney Blowout at their meeting  in Amherst Town Hall.

Attorney Peter Vickery will start things off at 6:30 p.m. Public Comment period by asking the Select Board to use their powers as liquor commissioners to ban all alcohol sales next year for the Blarney Blowout. 

Another blog has a tremendous point

More Blarney: From UMass President Caret

Police clad in riot gear make an arrest on Fearing Street near Frat

UPDATE:  UMass announces "comprehensive review" of police/town/university response to Blarney Blowout.  No BIG surprise (sarcasm).

#####

Bowing to pressure brought to bear by 100 kids holding a good old fashioned "protest march" and snippets of video posted on the web, UMass President Caret is calling for a full investigation of the Blarney Blowout including how heavily outnumbered police handled the sordid situation.

 Objects were throw from 3rd floor roof of Frat

He also complained to a Springfield Republican reporter about the Amherst bars being allowed to open early that day, and that those businesses bear some responsibility.  Except of course the bars were NOT open early that day, as the Select Board stopped allowing that a few years back because of the problems it caused. 

Perhaps the President just wants to look like he's doing something -- since the Blarney Blowout is receiving such blowout national media attention -- but he picked the wrong people to cast aspersions upon.

Interestingly President Caret hyped a "performance review" issued today that gave the highest rating ("Excellent)" for the goal:  "Admit high-quality students, striving to increase the academic profiles across all campuses."  Not the greatest timing in light of Blarney Blowout BS.

Amherst Firefighters just released a statement strongly supporting the actions of the Amherst, UMass and State police who had to rein in the largest out-of-control crowds this town has ever seen.  Firefighters reportedly faced "repeated aggressive and assaultive behavior."

Crowds THAT large, under the influence of copious amounts of alcohol, are a danger to themselves as well as innocent bystanders.  By many, many accounts (mine included) bottles and cans were hurled at police officers before the pepper balls started flying.

If President Caret wants to call for a full investigation, how about looking at discipline meted out these past few years for the hundreds of students arrested for rowdy off campus behavior?  Or why UMass doesn't provide on campus social events to preoccupy kids?

55 APD arrests vs only 3 UMPD arrests underscores the battles were all fought off campus. 

Amherst police will now be seconding guessing their use of any force over the next few months, just when the weather turns warm and partying escalates exponentially.

It's going to be a l-o-n-g spring.

Last year's preparation:  Also didn't work

Downtown bar owners ask for early opening hours in 2011

Police on North Pleasant Street, town jurisdiction, 12:10 p.m.

Blarney Blowout Solution?

 One APD arrest of 55 during Blarney Blowout

Local attorney Peter Vickery has resubmitted his radical proposal to the Amherst Select Board to use their powers as liquor commissioners to shut off all liquor sales in Amherst next year on the day before and day of the Blarney Blowout.

Last year UMass was criticized for not sending out threatening emails to students and their parents about the consequences of turning Blarney Blowout into a day of debauchery.  So this year the emails went out, and the results were even worse.

Last October for the final Red Sox game in the World Series, UMass tried giving the kids something to do by setting up a giant play area with large screen TVs, food and (non alcohol) drinks in the Southwest gathering area. They ended up with a riot anyway, with UMPD arresting 15.

Maybe it's time for the Amherst Select Board to implement Mr. Vickery's suggestion.  At the very least, put it on their March 17 agenda to facilitate a badly needed public discussion.  

   Ban Alcohol for Blarney Blowout

Hey-Hey, Ho-Ho

Plenty of media showed up to cover the protest march (but not a lot of protesters)

Under a picture perfect blue sky with weather warmer than we've seen for many months, about 100 UMass students and a gaggle of media showed up for the rally to protest "police brutality" at Saturday's Blarney Blowout.

 Marching past ye old Chapel

Even though 332 signed up on the Facebook event page saying they were going to attend.

 

Closing in on Whitmore

The protest march kicked off around the advertised 12:30 PM start time, and snaked towards Whitmore at a relatively brisk pace, all the while the crowd chanted "Hey-hey, ho-ho, police brutality has got to go."  Or something like that.

Chancellor Subbaswamy and John Kennedy, VC for University Relations, had wisely opted to be out of town today, so Associate Chancellor Susan Pearson was drafted to hear the demands of the group.  

Their first demand was a public apology from the Amherst Police Department for use of pepper ball guns that delivered OC ("oleoresin capsicum") gas into the unruly crowds when they failed to heed the order to disperse and started throwing objects at police and each other.  

The second demand was to meet with the Chancellor.  One of the statements that received a big round of applause was,  "The University should be defending students in the media not criticizing them."

Ms. Pearson accepted their demands, sort of, and said she would relay them to Chancellor Subbaswamy when he returns to campus.  Satisfied, the group then disbanded.  

All done by 1:15 PM, or around 45 minutes total.   Unlike the Blarney Blowout -- that started in the early morning and went late into the night on Saturday.

Kumbaya

Students on the march

Outraged students will march on Chancellor Subbaswamy's office from the Student Union this after at 12:30 p.m. to protest "police brutality" during the Blarney Blowout.

Egged on by the cherry picked snippets of video posted to that bastion of civic responsibility website Barstool Sports (who thought last year's event was "fun"), the march will most likely get far less participation from students than did the Blarney Blowout.

Unless of course they serve free beer.

 Another bastion of civic responsibility website:

RT if you think #UMASS Amherst #police used excessive force during the #blarney blowout.
— Smack College (@SMACKCOLLEGE) March 10, 2014

Comments posted to  Ch 22 TV story about upcoming protest:

Yes, Your Honor

Full parking lot in Court this morning

This morning it was standing room only in Eastern Hampshire District Court #1 (criminal courtroom) with all the Blarney Blowout perps, their parents, and media -- print, television, and digital.

Judge Payne, who usually handles the Monday morning arraignments, was on vacation so Judge Robert Gordon was presiding. 

Like the Amherst Police Department at the peak of the Blarney Blowout storm, the court system was a tad overwhelmed processing the perps. Most of the college aged youth were dressed up business casual, but had a rather subdued look on their faces.

Or as my Irish mother used to say, "looked like a spanked ass."

The charges ranged from "open container/underaged drinking" to the more serious "assault and battery on a police officer" usually in conjunction with "failure to disperse, rioting" and "resisting arrest."

Since the latter charges carried the potential of one year in the House of Correction the Judge always asked if they were going to hire an attorney or did they wish the court to appoint them one.

Most of the more seriously charged individuals responded they would be hiring an attorney and the court set a pre-trial date for later next month.

The youths charged with minor offenses for the most part opted to settle the matter today by chatting with the District Attorney out in the hallway and will probably end up with a $100 fine and 4 months probation.

This process will continue tomorrow and a bailiff thought maybe even into Wednesday.  And of course many of those arrested will continue to clog up the court system into the next few months, with some of them facing the prospect of a permanent criminal record.

A day of debauchery, a lifetime of regret.

#####

Amherst Police issue another statement 

Note to media:  total APD arrests 55 and UMPD 3, for a total of 58

Boston Globe editorial:  End the Blarney Blowout  (wish it was that easy)

AFD also stressed by Blarney:  20 patients seen, 12 transported to hospital

   AFD Blarney Blowout

BS Blarney Blowout 2014: Postmortem

Uprooted stop sign from town center now at DPW building

 Chancellor Subbaswamy speaks out loud and clear

The numbers really do tell the embarrassingly sad story of the Blarney Blowout 2014:  58 total arrests (55 APD, 3 UMPD) with another 24 summons issued for alcohol related incidents.

AFD transported between 18 and 20 overzealous Blarney participants to the Cooley Dickinson Hospital thus tying up a vital ambulance (one per person) for at least an hour per incident.

Four officers received minor injuries during the turbulence even though many of them were wearing riot gear.

But the real damage is just now picking up steam:  National news (including Time Magazine) blaring headlines that reflect ever so poorly on our little college town and the "flagship of higher education" in the entire state of Massachusetts, where education was pretty much founded.

Did the police overreact?  Hell no.  Obviously they were outnumbered 100 to 1, so when those kind of lopsided odds start to turn bad -- throwing bottles and cans, setting off fireworks, uprooting stop sign's and gravestone's etc -- there's really no choice but to step in.

 Chief Livingstone (white cap) on scene N. Pleasant/Fearing streets moments before use of OC pepper guns

I asked Chief Livingstone to respond to the concern APD "overreacted" with their use of OC pepper ball guns, and received this response:

"Like all our less than lethal force options, we have protocol and policy on how they are dispersed.   Yesterday's events, after numerous dispersal order were given at a number of locations, justified their use.  As you know I was on scene at Puffton, Townhouse and Fearing and North Pleasant Streets.  Officers acted accordingly and per policy."

North Pleasant Street had to be shut down for 15-20 minutes

So where do we go from here?

Last year, prior to the Blarney Blowout riot of 2013 (where only 6 were arrested), Amherst Attorney Peter Vickery sent a letter to the Amherst Select Board reminding them as the town's liquor commissioners they could, as an public safety measure, shut down all alcohol sales within town borders on the day of the Blarney Blowout.

They ignored him.

It's time to take that sobering suggestion seriously.  The Select Board should put the measure on their next meeting agenda, where they will no doubt be discussing the public safety disaster that unfolded in our little town yesterday.

Voting to suspend all alcohol sales in town for next year's Blarney Blowout at their next meeting, would be ironic justice ... since that meeting occurs on March 17 -- St. Patrick's Day.

In their own words:  Amherst police report 

Blarney Blowout 2014

 

AFD Central Station 9:30 a.m.

Scroll down for updates

Scene along North Pleasant/Fearing  about an hour before the riot

Original Post:  10:00 a.m.

The Dunkin Donuts drive thrus all over the area are swamped with college aged youth, probably pregaming with caffeine, and throngs of them are moving on foot from UMass central campus north towards Townhouse Apartments, scene of last years Blarney Blowout riot.

 Security already gathered at Townhouse Apartments 9:45 a.m.

 Crowd already line up downtown bar 10:15 a.m.

Security was already on scene at Townhouse and APD is out in force.  Already between Amherst and UMass police a half-dozen students have been arrested for alchol violations.  

Ch 22 shooting kids hanging on a balcony (and getting them fired up) 10:00 a.m.

APD arresting one for liquor law violation North Pleasant Street 10:20 a.m.

It's gonna be a l-o-n-g day.

#####

UPDATE 5:00 p.m.

 

APD Chief Livingstone (white hat) leading the troops (note tear gas plume in road)

 Yes I stayed close behind the folks with the (tear gas) guns

Around 2:30 p.m. riot clad police moved into a crowd of over 2,000 that had gathered behind a Frat House on the corner of Fearing Street and North Pleasant.  Police had to shut down N. Pleasant Street, the main road through the heart of UMass/Amherst for almost 15 minutes while trying to clear the huge gathering. 

Large crowd on the site of the infamous former Frat Row

Normally busy with cars N. Pleasant looking toward UMass

Yes, tear gas was fired (carefully) into the crowd to facilitate their cooperation. 

2 under arrest Fearing Street/North Pleasant

Arrest in front of Frat House on North Pleasant Street 

 

Half dozen Mass State Police vehicles are parked at APD headquarters

Blarney Blowout: Eve Of Destruction?

Townhouse quad this morning:  Calm before the storm?

Unfortunately the "Blarney Blowout" is a state of mind.  And unlike the Hobart Hoedown, which was always pretty much grounded in a certain narrow location, you really can't lock down the entire town.

 Hobart Ln:  Note sign height to avoid souvenir hunters

Perhaps the Select Board should have nipped things in the bud by pulling the liquor license of McMurphy's and Stackers three years ago when they first dreamed up this abomination.  Town officials (and the mainstream media) have been behind the curve on this issue since inception.

 Gazette trying to make up for last year

So here we are now, the day before the biggest party event of the year.  Yes, this time town and UMass officials have done an avalanche of advance messaging, dutifully carried by the mainstream media.

But nobody hired a shaman (or the CIA) to bring us a blizzard tomorrow.  The predicted weather is for the best day we've seen in a l-o-n-g while. And in this case, good weather is a cop's worst enemy.

 McMurphy's this morning:  note absence of Blarney Blowout advertising

Police and private security will try to be proactive and keep crowds from growing to the massive throng was saw at the Townhouse quad area last year.  But that may not be all that easy or even legal since the constitution does guarantee the  "freedom to assemble in public places."

Or as the hard core rowdies might put it, "Fight for your right to p-a-r-t-y."   Probably not what our Founding Fathers had in mind, however.

Daily Collegian with helpful Blarney Blowout advice  (They forgot "Don't drink and drive!")

 

Even the damn lawyers are into it

Downtown bars loading up Noon Friday

Targeting Blarney Blowout 2014

Hide the women and children on Saturday, March 8

Last year UMass made a monumental error not being proactive about the childish Blarney Blowout.  They failed to send out stern warnings to students and parents because they were afraid it would only add to the allure of the Blarney Blowout while providing it tons of free publicity.

Obviously the small minority of college aged youth who were going to engage in rowdy behavior that day were already well aware of the event, and perhaps took the absence of official notice from UMass as being a sign the University didn't really care.

Amherst town officials were infuriated, leading to some of the more terse exchanges in recent history.  But everybody put aside their differences, and Amherst and UMass are now working closely together via the Town Gown Steering Committee to help navigate a calmer course for the two superpowers over the next few decades.

UMass also learned from last year's mistake.  Enku Galaye sent out the following email to staff, students and parents.  The UMass employee who just forwarded it to me said he "can't recall ever getting a letter like this before."

Speaking of childish:  With defenders like this ...

Blarney Blowout Letter by larry_kelley_1

Maybe we can get UNH to issue a warning to their students! 

Favorite this if you're going to Blarney Blowout at #zoomass this weekend. We all need to meet and represent!  #WildcatNation
— UNH_Confessions (@UNH_Confessions) March 5, 2014

Blarney Blowout: Another Eruption?

Blarney Blowout 2014 (3/8/2014)

From: Larry Kelley 
Date: Tue, 25 Feb 2014 17:16:28 -0500 
To: UMass and Amherst town officials

Subject: Blarney Blowout FYI 

So just like last year around this time I'm now a getting a tidal way of hits over the past day or two from individuals doing a search using the term "Blarney Blowout 2014" or some variation on that theme. 

And no, it's not coming from some kid who posted a link to my latest Blarney Blowout diatribe on Reddit or Facebook. 

These are from individuals taking the time to enter the term into a search engine.

I'm talking somewhere in the range of 500 individual searches in the past 24 hours. That is a LOT. And NOT a good sign. 

Larry

#####

Larry -

Thanks for your email, I have been watching the Blarney Blowout Twitter feed for a few days and have noticed an increase in activity so I am not surprised that you are seeing an increase in traffic as well.

A few weeks ago, we had a meeting with officials from the Town to discuss plans for this off-campus event.  UMass is doing a number of things, including preparing messages to students and their parents about the consequences of negative behavior off campus as well as targeted communications to students living in apartment complexes, especially in North Amherst.

We have also been sharing information about Blarney t-shirts which include our logo or the Minuteman with our Licensing Office, as these t-shirts may be in violation of licensing agreements.

I noticed that one of the Facebook pages has already been shut down.  In addition, our Dean of Students office is reaching out to the students involved in these entrepreneurial activities to inform them about the consequences of creating an environment that leads to incivility.

On the day of the event, the UMPD stands ready to help APD and will have officers dedicated to this effort.

The campus is being and will continue to be proactive in messaging about behavior and in shutting down inappropriate activities where we have the ability to do so.

Thanks,

Nancy

Nancy Buffone
Executive Director, External Relations and University Events

 Blarney Blowout coverage more than doubled unique visitors last year

Blarney blowout could rank as one of the most overrated events ever.. Buncha people standing in the cold just yelling and throwing things

— Peter Renda (@P_Renda831) March 2, 2014
 

Story of the Year 2013

 APD, State PD and UMPD gather at west entrance to Townhouse Apartments

The war on off campus student rowdyism took a serious turn during 2013 and that turning point was the Blarney Blowout, Amherst's version of the Mardi Gras or Florida's Spring Break -- only seasoned with a tad more violence.

As usual good weather was a contributing factor but by far, marketing was the #1 reason for the out-of-control debauchery.

Downtown bars -- most notably McMurphy's and Stackers -- used social media to hype the "Blarney Blowout" promotion, a bait and switch name change from "Kegs & Eggs" which had drawn sharp criticism over the previous ten years for promoting bad behavior i.e. drinking in the morning.

In 2012 the Blarney Blowout had contributed to awful visuals in the downtown and an unusual strain on public safety, including an incident where a drunken college aged male hit on an 11-year-old girl.  The Select Board used their bully pulpit to chastise the pernicious promotion, but as the town's Liquor Commissioners did nothing to penalize the offenders.

So it should not have been too hard to figure out , even if you don't have sitemeters, that the Blarney Blowout, March 9, 2013 was going to be bad day for civility.  Really bad.

The promotion started at 11:00 AM (my first published report was 11:07 AM) and all eyes were focused on the downtown.  Meanwhile crowds, mostly dressed in green,  were gathering at Townhouse Apartments in North Amherst where violence had erupted the year before.

 Entire quad taken up by revelers

The crowd grew to over 2,000 taking up the entire quad and beer cans (some of them full) and snowballs started to fly.  A young woman in the center of the mob passes out from too much alcohol (ETOH) and AFD is called.

 Note UFO

When police and EMTs try to get to the young lady lost in the crowd the mob became uncooperative.  Objects now started flying in their direction. Public Safety personnel retreated after pulling the young woman from the crowd.

ETOH female (age 17) loaded into the ambulance under police escort

Over the next few hours, under the influence of a lot more beer, the crowd would only get surlier.  Vandalism starts to take place.  APD had put out an SOS after the incident with the ETOH female, with many State Police and UMPD officers responding to the call -- all of them dressed in riot gear.

A little after 5:00 PM they uniformly moved in, quickly dispersing the huge crowd while making six arrests.

Moments after police dispersed the unruly crowd

At the following Select Board meeting irate members -- particularly Chair Stephanie O'Keeffe -- blamed UMass for not putting out sternly worded emails to students and parents before the weekend.  UMass -- via a Letter to the Editor from PR guru John Kennedy -- blamed the town for allowing the promotion.

Of course the Select Board, unlike previous years, had not given the bars permission to open early that day and since advertising via social media is protected by the First Amendment there is little they could have done prevent the promotion.

But the acrimony led to UMass announcing it would donate $40,000 per semester so AFD could run two extra ambulances on weekends; and more importantly, the disturbing incident convinced the two major powers that something structural needed to be done.

 Chancellor Subbaswamy addresses Amherst Town Meeting 5/15/13

For the first time in history a UMass Chancellor came to spring Town Meeting to champion town/gown relations.  The $30,000 warrant article (matched by $30,000 from UMass)  to hire a consultant passed, leading to the formation of the Town Gown Steering Committee, a heavy hitter group of top UMass and Town officials that mirrored the ultra successful Safe & Healthy Neighborhoods Working Group.

The SHNWG formulated a Rental Registration and Permit Bylaw, the most important legislation passed by Town Meeting in a generation, and a direct outgrowth of last year's "Story of the Year".  

The Town Gown Steering Committee finished up a Request For Proposals a few weeks ago and will continue to meet after the consultant issues a report.

After all, implementation is the key.