Halloween weekend played host to two large-scale festivals in Southern California-HARD Day Of The Dead in Pomona, and Escape: Psycho Circus in San Bernadino, just east of LA. The end result was that almost 500 individuals were arrested on various charges between both festivals. Previous festivals at the LA County Fairgrounds have come under scrutiny and criticism by LA County officials after overdoses and the deaths of two women at similar concert over summer.
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Beverly Hills-based Live Nation agreed to cancel a September 10 electronic music event and added new measures for this weekend’s festival, including capping attendance at 40,000 a day, instead of 65,000, and raising the minimum age for entry to 21. Others were arrested for offenses related to public intoxication, being under the influence of a controlled substance, possessing a controlled substance for personal use or for sales and driving under the influence. There were also (unsurprisingly) 100 arrests for possession of a fake ID. The Fairplex sits on county-owned land.
Escape: Psycho Circus, a rave put on by Live Nation subsidiary Insomniac, drew a crowd of 42,000 on Friday and 46,000 on Saturday.
Almost all arrests were made at the security screening area, parking lot or outside of the event perimeter, according to police.
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About 20 “amnesty boxes” were placed around the entrance where fans were allowed to deposit illegal drugs without being questioned, Lawhead said.
