A YouTube upload of a fight in Red Bank Sunday. It appears to be outside the 7-11, in which case police arrested four people for disorderly conduct. Below, police made a strong show of force, bring in an armored vehicle from the Monmouth County fleet. (Click to enlarge)
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
Red Bank police made one fewer arrest during the KaBoom Fireworks Sunday than last year, showing, statistically at least, that the festival organizers’ push to bring the popular fireworks show back to a family focused event missed the mark.
However, police say they noticed a difference in the mood this year, and said there are a couple factors to consider when looking at the numbers.
K-9 cops were on duty, too. (Click to enlarge)
First, attendance was down this year due to the weather, which for much of the day looked like it would wash out the show, but the skies cleared late. No official attendance numbers have been released yet.
Also, there were no arrests made at the train station by New Jersey Transit police — in fact, it was a pretty tranquil scene at the station, said Red Bank Captain Darren McConnell.
Of the 19 arrests Sunday — there were 20 last year — McConnell said most of them occurred during the fireworks and were in the downtown area. Fights involving minors and teenagers — including one outside of 7-11 on Maple Avenue that involved an 18-year-old man, two 15-year-olds and a 12-year-old girl — seemed to be the main source of problems for police, whose presence was heightened this year with help from area towns, he said.
“The extra police presence and getting the message out, it helped,” McConnell said. “We saw less rowdiness in the crowd in general, even though there was about the same number of arrests. Overall the crowd was much more calm. There was less propensity for violence.”
This year, the weekend event’s organizers and the borough made a huge PR push to put visitors on notice that violence, public drinking and any other “anti-social” behavior would not be tolerated. In addition to adding police to create a stronger presence, the borough passed a zero-tolerance resolution seeking the courts impose the maximum fine for penalties.
Below, a list of the arrestees:
Kevin Dingee, 19 years old, of Keansburg, was arrested for Simple Assault
Kevin Fitzgerald, 20 years old, of Ocean Twp., was arrested for Possession of Marijuana
Patrick O’Connell, 19 years old, of Middletown, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Ronald Leibner, 61 years old, of Colts Neck, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Thomas Canzanell, 18 years old, of Hazlet, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Stanley Byhan Jr., 19 years old, of Neptune, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Kyle O’Gorman, 21 years old, of Holmdel, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Sean O’Gorman, 19 years old, of Holmdel, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Shakir Richardson, 18 years old, of Neptune, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Tessa Gardella, 19 years old, of Asbury Park, was arrested for DWI
James Nakkash, 23 years old, of Park Ridge, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Gary Brady, 19 years old, of Hazlet, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct and Resisting Arrest
Daniel Filippone, 20 years old, of Union Beach, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct
Ian Reilly, 37 years old, of Lakewood, was arrested for Disorderly Conduct and Resisting Arrest
Richard Agudelo, 20 years old, of Long Branch, was arrested for Aggravated Assault on a Police Officer, Resisting Arrest, Underage Possession of Alcohol, and Possession of Marijuana
A sixteen year old male from Long Branch was charged with Disorderly Conduct and Resisting Arrest
A fifteen year old female from Long Branch was charged with Disorderly Conduct
A fifteen year old female from Red Bank was charged with Disorderly Conduct
A twelve year old female from Red Bank was charged with Disorderly Conduct
A seventeen year old male from Ocean Twp, was charged with Underage Consumption of Alcohol
