Morristown parade day police blotter:

18 arrests and 17 hospital trips for revelers

By George!

NJ.com

March 16, 2009

Morristown's Finest were busy throughout parade day Saturday, and so were members of the Morristown Ambulance Squad.

Police issued 102 summonses and made 18 arrests between 11 a.m. Saturday and 2 a.m. Sunday, said Police Detective Lt. Steve Sarinelli.

In addition, he said, the ambulance squad responded to 26 calls--of which 17 involved hospital trips for people who were "incapacitated" by alcohol during St. Patrick's Day celebrations.

That's up from 13 such trips last year, three in 2007, and seven trips both in 2006 and 2005, the officer said.

Of the arrests, the most serious involved Stephen Ewing, 28, of West Caldwell. He faces several counts of aggravated assault and resisting arrest for allegedly scuffling with three police officers.

Lt. Sarinelli said police were called to a private party to quell "disruptive behavior." The suspect took a swing at Sgt. Robert Holtz and, while being transported from the scene, kicked Officers Jeffrey Griffin and Keith Hudson, the lieutenant said. The suspect was taken to the Morris County Jail where he was detained in lieu of $5,000 bail.

The other arrests broke down this way:

Disorderly conduct: 6

Simple assault: 5

Obstructing police: 1

Underage possession of alcohol: 3

Trespassing: 1

Another individual was picked up on an outstanding warrant for a contempt of court charge.

Here's the scorecard for summonses:

Drinking in public: 71

Urinating in public: 26

Selling merchandise without a permit: 2

Excessive noise: 2

Littering: 1

Prior to the parade -- which typically draws tens of thousands of people from all over the Morris County region to Morristown -- Mayor Donald Cresitello said he planned to explore whether the town can require bars to stay closed until after the parade's conclusion. At least one tavern opens at 7 a.m. on parade day, the biggest day of the year for local bars.

George & Martha's American Grille erected a tent on Saturday; Grasshopper Off the Green had to abandon similar plans because of an insurance issue, the mayor said. The council denied an outdoor permit to the Dark Horse Lounge.

Tonight the mayor said it probably will take a couple of months to parse the data before he makes a recommendation to the council about any special regulations for future parade days.

He said the numbers of arrests and citations simply may reflect the heavy police and firefighter presence on Saturday.

"I'd publicly like to thank the police and firemen, who did a great job," said the Mayor, adding kudos to the Morris County Sheriff's Office and police from Morris Township and other area towns that pitched in.

The mayor also stressed that drinking offenses from Saturday night were unrelated to the Morris County St. Patrick's Day parade.

"These activities on the weekend before St. Patrick's Day would take place whether there's a parade or not," he said. "This went on 17 years ago, before we had the parade here. Certainly, it's more intense than it used to be, because more bars cater to young people now."

The mayor said most families who came to the noontime parade had left town by 4 p.m.

Thousands of parade-goers behaved impeccably and enjoyed a lovely afternoon, as the photos here attest.

Parade organizers donate money to Morristown to cover security during the parade. But the mayor said the town incurs considerable police overtime expenses for the rest of the day. He did not have those figures readily available.