Though the Athens Police Department’s alcohol-related arrests have stayed consistent since 2009, underage-drinking arrests by the Ohio Investigative Unit nearly doubled in 2010.
The unit’s arrest numbers for Athens jumped from 157 in 2006 to 402 in 2010, according to reports from the Ohio Investigative Unit and Ohio Department of Public Safety.
In the meantime, the unit’s underage-drinking arrests rose from 75 in 2009 to 128 in 2010.
Ohio Investigative Unit spokeswoman Julie Hinds attributes the arrests to a variety of factors, including Halloween weekend and the spring fests.
About 31 percent of the unit’s underage-drinking arrests for 2010 were made in October, the month of the notorious Court Street block party.
“Opportunity presents itself when kids have more chances to drink,” Hinds said.
Athens Police Chief Tom Pyle said alcohol-related arrests by Athens police have remained steady this year with 458 to date, compared with 464 in 2010 and 451 in 2009.
“Not all of those arrests are underage, but the majority are,” Pyle said.
Other factors that lead to an increase in arrests for the Ohio Investigative Unit is its participation in more spring fests as well as requests from the city and mayor’s office to investigate specific events, Hinds said.
Though the numbers indicate an increase in underage drinking, Hinds said there are no plans for the Ohio Investigative Unit to increase patrolling efforts.
“This will be my fifth Halloween, and I don’t believe anything has changed with safety efforts and enforcement efforts,” she said.
kg287609@ohiou.edu
