HOLLISTER
– With the Hollister Independence Rally a mere day away, local
law enforcement is finalizing its plan to police the motorcycles,
vendors and a whole lot of people.
HOLLISTER – With the Hollister Independence Rally a mere day away, local law enforcement is finalizing its plan to police the motorcycles, vendors and a whole lot of people.
Hollister Police Chief Jeff Miller did want to comment on the exact number of outside officers committed to assisting with rally coverage so people inclined to commit crimes won’t be tipped off to what police staffing will be, he said.
“We need people to count on police being present and that we’re doing our best to provide for everybody’s safety and enjoyment of the event,” Miller said.
Nevertheless, 25 committed officers from the state Department of Justice and another 12 confirmed by the Watsonville Police Department will be on hand to support local police.
“We’ve been very fortunate to date; there’s been no cancellations,” Miller said of agencies that have committed to sending officers. “I think we’ve done all we can to prepare, given the resources available to us.”
Gilroy police will not be sending officers to Hollister; instead, they will be putting all available staff on their own streets. The combination of hundreds of rally guests staying in Gilroy motels and a fireworks concern after seven pyrotechnic-related fires last Fourth of July has put Garlic City police on alert.
Every available officer in the Hollister department’s 31-person staff will be deployed over the course of the three days, save for two out with injuries, he said.
All outside support, which will arrive on Friday and leave on Sunday, will patrol the event in teams and will come with a supervisor to manage them, Miller said.
“The majority of our officers will be committed to patrolling the city because they’re familiar with the streets and city ordinances,” he said. “We’ll still have Hollister supervisors at the rally to oversee the outside officers.”
Miller projected the total cost for the police department to staff the rally, including officers’ pay, supplies, equipment and personnel expenses, will be close to $300,000.
He remains cautious about the upcoming weekend.
“Any time you have a large influx of people, you’re going to be concerned about the course of events,” he said. “We hope everybody has a good time and we welcome them to Hollister, but we want them to follow the rules and obey the laws.”
The California Highway Patrol’s Hollister/Gilroy division will deploy every available officer during the event, CHP officer Terry Mayes said.
Between 33 and 35 officers will patrol all county roads on each of the three days, including the main entrances to town, Highways 25 and 156, Fairview Road and Union Road, Mayes said.
“Instead of being in two counties, we’ll be all over the place in one,” she said.
In Santa Clara County, uniformed CHP officers from the truck scales on U.S. Highway 101 will patrol the roads. That’s not skimping, according to officer Brad Voyles.
“The Santa Clara side will be manned as heavily as it would be for a regular holiday weekend,” Voyles said.
At the scales, there will be one uniformed officer, instead of the normal two or three, plus civilian staff. If it gets busy there, Voyles said, “The trucks are going to have to wait.”
CHP officers will be watching for any moving violation but will focus on seat belts and drunk driving, Mayes said.
“Anything that could potentially cause a collision,” Mayes said. “We want to try to keep it a safe Fourth without any loss of life.”
CHP officers working the rally will be compensated by the city of Hollister. Mayes estimated their overtime would cost around $55,000. The city will get a check from rally organizers to pay the bills.
San Benito County Sheriff Curtis Hill’s focus isn’t on the everyday happenings of the rally but on outlaw biker gangs who could cause problems at it, he said.
Between 30 to 40 officers from sheriff and police departments throughout the state will arrive Friday to assist deputies, with the sole purpose of monitoring the activities of biker gangs attending the event, Hill said.
“Some groups are here only to conduct criminal activities; it’s a part of any biker rally,” Hill said. “Whether they’re laundering money, dealing dope or dabbling in prostitution, … for me, it’s all about criminal activities going on, and if we see it, we’re going to address it.”
The officers’ salaries are being paid by their own agencies, so the county doesn’t incur any cost from their assistance, he said.
The majority of the department’s staff will be on duty during the weekend, but not all deputies will be working. Last year’s event cost the department almost $20,000, with the majority of that in overtime, Hill said.
This year Hill cut his expenses, including deputies’ overtime hours, by two-thirds and estimates a cost of about $6,000.
“I don’t feel the county of San Benito should be paying for this event,” he said. “The city should take that responsibility.”
