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2014 POLICE ACTIVITY AT MUSIKFEST REPORT

August 13, 2014


Each year, approximately one million people come to the City of Bethlehem to enjoy and partake in all the
different shows, music and concerts at Americas Largest Outdoor Music Festival. Each year, Bethlehem
Police patrol Musikfest to keep it safe.

As you know, Musikfest encompasses two large areas of the City; on the south side by Steel Stacks and on the
north side along the downtown Main Street areas and the Monocacy Creek, Johnston Park area.

Public Safety Agencies in the City; Police, Fire, and EMS are stationed at Musikfest to handle any type of
incident that arises. The approach is simple; a joint coordinated effort to ensure that if a incident occurs, a direct
and immediate response is followed. Most issues at Musikfest are minor and simple; a bee sting, sick persons,
heart issues, too much to drink, injures, and some physical altercations.

Bethlehem Police officers are assigned to work all areas of Musikfest in vehicles, on horseback, on foot, on
bikes and on motorcycles. The BPD Mounted Unit is backed up by Mounted Units from the Lancaster City
Police Department and the Pennsylvania State Police. City Emergency Management and Northampton County
Emergency Management monitor the festival and assist in any and all public safety issues. The FBI also assists
the Bethlehem Police Department in monitoring the festival for issues of public safety. A Pa State Police Liquor
Control Enforcement Detail assists BPD with alcohol issues. 2000 Musikfest volunteers and an Artsquest Staff
trained in public safety are also there to assist the public.

2014 was a challenging year for Bethlehem Police at Musikfest. Other then the normal altercations between
people, some intoxicated individuals, there were several serious incidents in Bethlehem near Musikfest. None of
these were on the festival grounds. One was a bank robbery during the day. The bank robber was quickly
apprehended within 5 hours of the robbery by Bethlehem Detectives and Officers after a chase. The other two
incidents were caused by issues that some individuals and groups had prior to Musikfest. These individuals and
groups happen to see each other in the area of Musikfest and two major altercations occurred involving
firearms. The two Aggravated Assaults that occurred involved two juveniles that were arrested; one struck an
adult with brass knuckles and the other was intoxicated and spit body fluid on a City Paramedic attempting to
treat him.

Incidents like these occur every week in the Lehigh Valley, not just at Musikfest or near Musikfest. These
incidents of violence are a product of our current society, the acceptance of a thug culture and the breakdown of
societal norms. They occur every day across our country.

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This year arrests at Musikfest are broken down into several categories. The following numbers should shed
some light on Police activities during Musikfest 2014.






MUSIKFEST 2014 ARREST STATISTICS


TOTAL MUSIKFEST ARRESTS ALL LOCATIONS.(41)

Total Adults Arrested ALL Locations.(29)

Total Juveniles (under 18) Arrested ALL Locations(12)



TOTAL MUSIKFEST ARRESTS by Age Group:

Under 18 years..(11)

18 22 years.(16)

23 plus...(14)




ARRESTS BY LOCATIONS:

Festplatz(5)

Tropical Platz....(3)

Volkesplatz / Handwerkplatz(2)

Main Street(20)

Steel Stacks(5)

Banana Island/Sand Island....(6)

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RESIDENCES OF PERSONS ARRESTED

Bethlehem Residents..(14)

Out of Town Residents...(27)

TOTAL(41)






ARRESTS THAT WERE UNDER 21 Years of AGE (MINORS):

TOTAL (19)
15 years..4
16 years..6 * Alcohol involved in 6 arrests
17 years..3 * Marijuana involved in 4 arrests
18 years .4 * Fighting, Trespassing behavior in 9 arrests
19 years..1
20 years..1





MAIN STREET ARRESTS BY AGE GROUPS:

Under 18.(7)

18-22 years.(7)

23 plus years...(6)








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VIOLATIONS:

Public Drunkenness.(19)

Disorderly Conduct.(6)

Underage Drinking..(6)

Trespass.(2)

Harassment..(1)

Aggravated Assault.(2)

Possession of Marijuana..(2)

Possession Synthetic Marijuana..(2)

Possession Paraphernalia.(1)




PERCENTAGES:

(41) Total Arrests per 1,000,000 people at Musikfest over ten days = .0041% of people.


49% of Arrests involved the Main Street area 20 Arrests.

35% of the Main Street arrests were juveniles.
65 % of the Main Street arrests were adults.
70% of the Main Street arrests were between the age of 15 and 22 years.





Mark A. DiLuzio
Chief of Police
City of Bethlehem