Halloween falling on a Friday might be good news for some
people, but University of California Santa Barbara officials, along
with the Isla Vista Sheriff Station, are taking extra measures to
stem the large number of revelers expected to show up at this
perennially popular party zone. Â
“We want people to have fun, not to get harmed or
arrested,” said Richard Jenkins, UCSB’s adviser to
campus organizations.
More than 100 Isla Vista Foot Patrol deputies, doubling last
year’s total, will be on the watch Halloween night. The
California Highway Patrol will also be on hand for sobriety check
points.
Law enforcement will be particularly concentrated in the area of
Del Playa Drive, historically considered the most popular party
place, said Lt. Tom McKinney of the Isla Vista Sheriff’s
Department. Multiple arrests have already been made in the past few
weekends.
“The numbers of party-goers were so large (last year), we
felt we needed a larger presence to keep control,” McKinney
said.Â
“We used to be the second largest party after Mardi
Gras,” Jenkins said. “In the years past, women were
literally getting raped. There were robberies, beatings,
thefts.”
A No Tolerance Policy that was instituted in 1993 will again be
in effect this Halloween. The policy states that police can arrest
and give citations without warnings, McKinney said.Â
Since the No Tolerance Policy was implemented, the number of
offenses has been greatly reduced, but sheriff staffing problems
have led to a recent climb in numbers of crimes and offenses,
McKinney said.
UCSB officials have sent notices to its student population in
addition to a number of in-state colleges, including the UC,
California State University, community colleges and to institutions
in nearby states, such as Oregon, Washington and Arizona.
“We’re making students aware that the environment is
going to be proliferated with police,” said
Jenkins.Â
Last year’s statistics indicate that roughly 25 percent of
citations were given to UCSB students, 15 percent to area community
and city college students and the remaining 60 percent to people
from outside Santa Barbara.Â
“We would love to reduce the number of
out-of-towners,” McKinney said.Â
Ceshaun Armstrong, a fifth-year psychology and African American
studies student, went to Santa Barbara last year for Halloween
festivities and didn’t think the extra enforcement was
necessary.
“I didn’t see anything going on; I didn’t
think there was any need for police,” she said. “It was
just a group of college students having fun.”Â
“I think that (new security patrol measures) may deter me
from going. It might make us want to look for somewhere else to
go,” she added.
For some, partying responsibility is not up to the police.
“Why should we be stopped from enjoying ourselves?
It’s people’s own responsibility. Look out for
yourself; look out for your friends,” said Porscha Carter, a
fifth-year psychobiology student.Â
In an e-mail titled “The Party is Over” that was
sent to UCSB students, Jenkins detailed what sort of police
presence partiers could expect.Â
Out-of-town visitors are not allowed to stay in any residence
halls. Barricades will be set up in Isla Vista parking lots,
with an Isla Vista Foot Patrol enforcement team issuing parking
citations and towing when necessary.Â
Student response to the e-mails and notices has been mixed,
Jenkins said, who said he has received many e-mails in the past few
days.
Some students have taken the message to heart.
“My dormmates are refusing to go out to (Del Playa)
because they’re afraid they’ll get caught, and they go
out to DP every weekend,” said first-year undeclared UCSB
student Jane Choi.
“I think the change will only be effective for the
Halloween weekend. Right after Halloween is over, I’m sure
that they’ll all go out again,” Choi added.
UCLA students can relate to the students at UCSB.
“(The administration) already took enough away from
us,” Armstrong said, referring to UCLA’s own abandoned
Black Sunday tradition.