Law Agencies Gird for New Year’s Eve Activities

More than 100 police officers, four times the usual number, will patrol Hollywood’s streets tonight to prevent a New Year’s Eve repeat of Halloween rioting that damaged 12 stores and injured nine people--including three officers.

Police said they are taking no chances, even though Hollywood street revelers typically usher in the new year more peacefully than they welcome November.

Not only in Hollywood but throughout the Southland, police and Highway Patrol officers will be out in greater than usual numbers for New Year’s Eve. And they will be armed with a new state law aimed at stopping a dangerous holiday tradition: shooting a weapon into the air.

Charge a Felony

Police can charge such offenders with a felony--whether the bullets hit someone on the way down or not. As a result, convicted offenders risk spending the entire new year in jail. And if the bullet kills someone, the charge could be murder.

Police received 460 reports of gunplay last New Year’s Eve. Falling bullets killed at least two men and injured several others--including a 13-year-old girl and a police officer.

Officials hope the tougher law will prove a life-saving deterrent, Officer Don Lawrence said.

Keeping people safe was also the theme of Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Woo and Police Capt. Rick Batson as they described plans to manage New Year’s Eve on the Hollywood thoroughfare that has become a holiday gathering place.

Last Halloween on Hollywood Boulevard near Vine Street, police arrested 28 people after members of a street crowd, many in costume, began smashing store windows and throwing bottles at police.

Such “disorderly behavior . . . was entirely unacceptable to the Hollywood community,” Woo said. “This kind of activity could be a setback to Hollywood redevelopment efforts.”

At least one of a dozen damaged businesses, British Imports, is still recovering from the Halloween rioting. The store sells what manager Amir Nejad calls rock ‘n’ roll accessories--such as spiked wristbands and leather pants.

Nejad remembers watching television news reports of looters removing about two-thirds of his merchandise near the start of the Christmas shopping season.

On this holiday, Nejad said, “the owner wants to be here all night.”

‘Still Scared’

“I’m still scared,” said Ellen You, who manages Hollywood Wig a few doors down from British Imports.

But Batson said the boulevard has not been a trouble spot on past New Year’s Eves. Unlike Halloween when people mill in the streets, New Year’s Eve is a night for cruisers on the boulevard, Batson said.

Police expect to see as many as 1,200 cars pass an hour. If traffic gets too congested, officers will shut down portions of the boulevard or ticket the cruisers.

The clear message, Woo said, is do not come to Hollywood looking for trouble.

“The weather is going to be in our favor,” said Batson of the forecast of rain and cold he hopes will dampen the enthusiasm of potential troublemakers.

Batson also expects help from local restaurant and bar owners, and warned, “If they sell alcohol to people already intoxicated or minors, they could lose their liquor license.”

Hollywood Chamber of Commerce President Bill Welsh said the goal was not to “build a wall around Hollywood, and say, ‘Don’t come here,’ ” but to keep Hollywood accessible to families dining out and to theater patrons. He compared Hollywood Boulevard to New York City’s Times Square.

Welsh remembers people congregating on Hollywood Boulevard to celebrate holidays since at least the 1940s.

Said Batson: “Only in the most recent times have there been problems.”