123 arrested in Newport Beach Fourth of July events; 31 in Hermosa
More than 150 people celebrating their independence along the coast Thursday wound up shackled or behind bars.
Of them, at least 123 people were arrested in Newport Beach through all of the Fourth of July and up until 5:30 a.m. Friday, according to Sgt. Todd Hughes of the Newport Beach Police Department.
“As you can imagine, most of them [are] alcohol-related,” Hughes said.
He said the department had 119 arrests on each of the two previous Fourth of July holidays and feels this year is “almost exactly the same.”
But in Hermosa Beach, the 31 arrests and 114 citations tallied on Thursday were among the most Sgt. Landon Phillips could remember.
“As far as arrests go, that is the highest number that I can recall for recent years,” Phillips said, attributing the number to increased enforcement efforts.
“The ramped-up enforcement helped minimize the violence,” he said, noting that there were “fewer fights” and “fewer injuries” than in previous years.
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