By REID TUCKER
Miramar Beach – The Walton County Sheriff’s Office’s zero-tolerance policy with regard to underage drinking has effectively reduced Spring Break-related arrests by almost 4/5ths in just four years.
Arrests were in the high 1,000-plus range following the 2013 Spring Break season, when the zero-tolerance policy was first implemented, as deputies were basically hauling drunken college-aged revelers off to jail whole house parties at a time. The numbers were down substantially each year after that, but Spring Break 2016 looks to be the quietest in a long time. For instance, the WCSO is reporting just 214 arrests and a few notices to appear in court (or NTAs) for such things as underage drinking, possession of marijuana and breaches of the peace reported during the busy period from March 5 to March 27.
“It’s true, we have had a very tame year, especially compared to years past,” said WCSO Public Affairs Coordinator Corey Dobridnia. “There are of course areas of greater activity where we had some problems, but [the individuals arrested] didn’t ruin it for the whole bunch. Even the ones that did get arrested knew why they were being arrested. Our position all along has been ‘we want you to have a good time, but we don’t want things to get out of hand,’ and they understand that now. Deputies on the beach are saying most kids they’ve dealt with have been very polite, very obliging.”
Of the slightly more than 200 Spring Break-related arrests, 122 were for possession of alcohol by individuals younger than 21. So far, 120 of all people arrested are males, while female arrestees number 83 of the total.
In contrast to the past few years, Spring Break 2016 hasn’t required deputies to hit the beach too hard when it comes to underage drinking – a misdemeanor that carries a $350 penalty and includes a free 45-minute trip north to the Walton County jail in DeFuniak Springs. Other challenges have somewhat filled that vacuum, however, as rip currents and other weather factors have led to higher-than-usual calls for water rescues. One such incident last week resulted in a fatality when a swimmer drowned after being pulled far away from shore by the undertow.
Another mitigating factor is the migration undertaken by some of the rowdier Spring Breakers from the Emerald Coast to other beaches, be that Miami to the south or Alabama’s Orange Beach to the west. Walton County’s strict zero-tolerance policy kept its 30 miles of coastline from descending into the chaos that plagued nearby Panama City Beach, which had for decades been among the de facto Panhandle destinations of choice for Spring Break. PCB suffered what was probably its worst-ever year in 2015, when alcohol-related deaths, rampant public drug abuse, multiple shootings and a sexual assault in broad daylight that made its way to Youtube led elected officials to pass an even stricter policy that completely bans alcohol from the beach.
Walton County’s low projections for total arrests is even more impressive considering the low volume of additional arrests expected for this year, is that there are still a solid two or three weeks of heavy Spring Break traffic on the way, said deputy Ryan Hooks. The veteran beach patrol officer was gracious enough to let the Herald tag along during the majority of his shift on Miramar Beach one sunny but cool afternoon, and the worst thing he had to deal with was almost getting his four-wheel-drive pickup stuck in the sand. Hooks said this year’s lower-than-ever arrest figures are proof of the efficacy of reaching out to universities through the Internet, and specifically via social media.
“The success we’re having this year is a tribute to the active role we’ve taken on social media and the letters that were sent out to colleges before Spring Break got here,” Hooks said. “There are still houses full of kids and the beaches are still full of people, but for the most part our numbers are way down, and that’s a good thing. We let them know ahead of time that they’re welcome to come here and be safe, but if they break the law we’ll deal with it accordingly.”