Pubdate: Tue, 23 Aug 2005
Source: Salt Lake Tribune (UT)
Copyright: 2005 The Salt Lake Tribune
Contact:  http://www.sltrib.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/383
Video cited: http://www.slcdnb.com/phpBB2/ (Quicktime)
Related: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1367/a06.html
Author: Michael N. Westley
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/raves.htm (Raves)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mdma.htm (Ecstasy)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/raids.htm (Drug Raids)

RAVERS SAY COPS WERE TOO ROUGH MAKING BUST

Utah County: Sheriff Defends The Actions, Denies Wrongdoing

Partygoers at a rave in Spanish Fork Canyon that was busted by police
Saturday night say officers used brutal and excessive force to clear
the crowd.

As many as 90 police officers from several agencies, including SWAT
members and major crimes investigators, stormed the DJ-driven dance
party around 11:30 p.m. dressed in full SWAT gear and holding
automatic weapons.

A helicopter announced the police presence as it crested a nearby hill
and began shining a spotlight on the outdoor dance area, said
19-year-old Scott Benton of Logan.

"The cops just came in wearing full Army [camouflage]. It was
basically brute force," Benton said. "I had a gun put in my face and
was told to get out of there."

Standing in a crowd of people near the main stage, Alisha Matagi says
she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time when she was thrown
to the ground, punched, kicked and handcuffed by police.

"I did absolutely nothing wrong," she said. Matagi was arrested with
about 60 other partyers. She was booked into the Utah County Jail on
the suspicion of resisting arrest and failing to obey an officer,
according to police records.

About 1,000 people were cleared in less than a half-hour from the
private ranch owned by the Childs family in the Diamond Fork area of
Spanish Fork Canyon, rave promoters said. Several party attendees told
The Salt Lake Tribune that officers barked orders fraught with
profanity, beat people to the ground and used their weapons to
intimidate the crowd.

A video of the opening moments of the bust, taken by Jeffrey Coombs
and snatched from the ground by another partier as Coombs was tackled,
shows the officers using force on individuals as they took over the
crowd.

Utah County Sheriff James Tracy said Monday that he had seen the video
and called it an accurate representation of the bust.

"I stand by everything that was done there that night. We did use some
force. It was appropriate and necessary to take those who were
fighting us into custody," Tracy said.

He also said that no officers used profanity as they conversed with
partiers, nor did they punch, kick, Mace or use tear gas on any of the
attendees.

"It's all a lie and we refute every word of that," said
Tracy.

But the video clearly shows an officer using profanity as he demands
the music be turned off.

"Turn that off. Turn that music off or I'll take your ass to jail,"
the officer can be heard saying to the DJ. In the video, the area
where people had been dancing transforms into what looks like a
battlefield with groups of officers surrounding ravers on the ground,
guns drawn and assault dogs in tow.

"I saw a girl tackled to the ground for no reason because she told
them not to touch her. It was vicious," Benton said.

Police said the party Saturday night was the third event held in Utah
County during the past month. The all-night parties attract a host of
illegal activities including drug use, theft, sexual assault and
underage drinking, according to Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Darren Gilbert.

Saturday's party, named Versus II, had been tracked by police for
several weeks, Gilbert said. Police planned the bust when they
discovered that the rave's promoters had not filed for a mass
gathering permit through the County Commission office. To have more
than 250 at an event without that permit is a violation of the law,
Gilbert said.   Party promotor Brandon Fullmer said he purchased a
mass gathering permit through the Utah County Health Department about
three weeks ago. The purchase of that permit, which ensures water,
sanitation and medical services, was confirmed by County Health
employee Jay Stone.

Fullmer did not know that a similar permit, which requires a security
plan and event details, needed to be acquired.

The sheriff had little sympathy for the promoters or those at the
rave. "They did nothing more than ensure this was a venue for illegal
drug use and consumption," Tracy said. Officers confiscated ecstasy,
marijuana, alcohol, cocaine and mushrooms, he said.

Among those arrested for drug possession were several security guards
hired by Fullmer to patrol the event. Guards at security check points
confiscated alcohol and drugs as ravers filed into the party, Fullmer
said.

"[Security guards] have no legal statutory authority to take and hold
controlled substances. It's against the law for them to have them,"
Tracy said. 
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MAP posted-by: Jackl