First Stop for Burning Man Burners Is a Speed Trap

[my3rdeye]

Be careful if you are going this year...


First Stop for Burning Man Burners Is a Speed Trap

Heavy law enforcement presence as Burning Man crews head into the desert to set up for the event


By Josh Keppel

| Friday, Aug 23, 2013 | Updated 5:55 PM PDT

Many burners arriving to Black Rock City, NV were being greeted by law enforcement officers with sirens blaring.

Here are some reasons why burners say police pulled them over:

•Driving one mile over the posted 10 mph speed limit
•Not using a blinker
•License plate blocked by bike rack
•License plate not illuminated


“In 18 years on the playa, I’ve never seen a more aggressive police presence than what’s been going down today,” read an Instagram post by Aaron Muszalski, aka SFSlim.

Muszalski, was the first to alert fellow burners to be aware when he posted a story showing one of the DPW vehicles, called El Couchino because it is an El Camino with a couch in the back, getting pulled over for a registration violation.

But that was just the tip of the iceberg.

“One DPW member was issued a $275 ticket for urinating on the playa, and threatened with being forced to register as a convicted sex offender,” Muszalski said.

There are always a lot of police from a number of different agencies visibly patrolling Black Rock City, but citations for lesser infractions appears to be new.

Some are speculating it has something to do with the fact that Burning Man has filed a lawsuit against Pershing County, Nevada over local government’s new fees for the event, from $180,000 in 2011 to over $600,000 in 2013.

Participants complaining about rampant law enforcement is nothing new at Burning Man, but this does seem to be a worse start to the event than anyone can remember in terms of likelihood of getting pulled over.

For many years, only four BLM officers were at the event in the week before it opened, and they enjoyed the event and came every year. This year, because of the ramping number of people who arrive early, the initial number of early officers was to be 20, but that number may have gone down a little, according to someone with intimate knowledge of policing Burning Man, but who wanted to remain anonymous.

While the gates to Burning Man don’t officially open until 6 p.m. Sunday night, each year thousands of people get Early Arrival passes to come in to set up art, camps or to volunteer with the organization.

Wednesday night, as lightning struck the hills around Black Rock City, BLM officers waited at the T-junction after the Greeter’s Stations and pulled over numerous cars for any and all reasons.

Chances are, if you didn’t get pulled over, it was because the officers were busy with someone else.

This year, for the first time, BLM (Bureau of Land Management, a Federal agency that, according to their webpage “administers 264 million acres of public lands, located primarily in the 12 Western” and has Federal jurisdiction over the Black Rock Desert) officers will ride side-by-side with Pershing County Sheriffs, granting any and all jurisdictional rights in a stop.

On Friday, Burning Man posted a “Law Enforcement in Black Rock City” entry to their Burning Blog saying, “While Black Rock City is certainly a remote and freewheeling place, it’s also a functioning metropolis. And just like in any other city, law enforcement patrols BRC day and night to keep the city safe and compliant with the laws that allow us to have the event in the first place. So yes, any illegal action on your part can lead to a citation (more common) or your arrest (rare).”

Former special agent in charge for the BLM, Mark Pirtle, oversaw Burning Man for years but he recently retired so some are thinking the new regime may be a part of this new aggressive enforcement policy.

“It is often like this at the beginning, then it calms down once the gates open because there are just too many of us,” said one longtime burner artist who wanted to remain anonymous.

Another person who has worked with Burning Man for many years saw it a different way, "They (BLM) let us do a lot out here and they could be a lot worse. It's all about your attitude when dealing with them."



http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/weird/First-Stop-for-Burning-Man-Burners-police-sirens-220879871.html

 

[23536]

“One DPW member was issued a $275 ticket for urinating on the playa, and threatened with being forced to register as a convicted sex offender,” Muszalski said.

I've heard of this happening to people.

 

[Bob Loblaw]

While dickish, the roadblocks aren't illegal, are they? They don't really sound like roadblocks either. But maybe I'm just too tired to read properly.

 

[Madhatter4]

And once again Law Enforcement is hell bent on ruining everyone's good time...

 

[my3rdeye]

While dickish, the roadblocks aren't illegal, are they? They don't really sound like roadblocks either. But maybe I'm just too tired to read properly.

No its just random pull overs, I was high when I posted it. I guess it's not really about drugs either. I bet it will be though.

 

[neversickanymore]

when are we going to look at and address what law enforcement does far to often these days.. EXTORT MONEY FROM US.

 

[One Thousand Words]

It's Nervada, is this really a surprise? Outside of Vegas they have a reputation for intimidation.

If you are travelling to BM with illegal contraband then you make sure you do not attract attention. That includes driving to the speed limit and making your vehicle road worthy.

 

[Wayne C]

I went to burning man last year for the first time. It is an awesome festival, amazing people! (I got to meet Alex Grey) But there are more cops at burning man than almost any other festival I've ever been to. (I've been to over 15 different types of music festivals throughout my life) Bonnaroo for example has alot of cops outside of the gates but not ONE inside the venue. Yes, you read it right 100,000 people at Bonnaroo and not one on duty cop inside the entire venue, no bullshit. For some reason I had expected Burning Man to be the same way, but this is not the case. I got a $500 ticket for smoking a bowl in front of stage at a show! Cops came out of no where and just yanked me out of the croud. Last year the playa was INFESTED with law enforcement, I can't even begin to imagine how bad it's going to be this year. I was told by a reliable source that there are even more cops every year, which is very depressing. The pigs have ruined this festival so I don't plan to return anytime soon, they need to relocate that so the Man doesn't make 100's of thousands of dollars off of marijuana tickets.

It sucks to say but I'm glad I didn't go this year, as a cali medical patient I want to be able to smoke freely. In vegas I can do that legally my card is valid in Nevada. In case anyone didn't know Black Rock City is on federal land so any form of cannabis is strictly forbidden. Guaranteed $500 ticket, that has to be paid. I like to accompany good music with weed I just can't help myself.

 

[my3rdeye]

If you are travelling to BM with illegal contraband then you make sure you do not attract attention. That includes driving to the speed limit and making your vehicle road worthy.

They just make shit up, say you swerved or something. Then they say they smelled weed or the dog did. You can't really do shit to stop an illegal search. You might beat it in court, 10 grand in lawyer fees later and you lose all your drugs.

I didn't realize it had become such a bacon fest, I thought it was just a bunch of hippies in the middle of nowhere. An article about the police this year:

State, fed law enforcement integrates for 2013 Burning Man


An estimated 68,000 people are anticipated to stream into the Black Rock Desert near Gerlach, Nev. for Burning Man beginning Sunday, and federal and state law enforcement agencies for the event said this year they are implementing a new integration to ensure the public’s safety.

“We have integrated resources and manpower out of need and because the population has grown,” Pershing County Sheriff Richard Machado said. “The population is to the point now that it’s imperative that we work together to manage this event.”

In previous years, each sector of law enforcement covered their own agency jurisdictions and relied on the resources they brought out for the event. In addition to sharing resources this year, there will be one law enforcement command post in Black Rock City stationed near Burning Man’s Black Rock Ranger’s station and each vehicle will have a state officer and a federal officer to ensure they can respond to any incident at the event.

“We knew that we needed to take an internal look at this operation and we knew that integration was a key component of that,” the Bureau of Land Management Special Agent-In-Charge Dan Love said.

Love said they will staff 102 officers total for the event between the PCSO and the BLM. He said for every shift, 64 officers will be on duty on the playa and will rotate in overlapping shifts every 12 hours. Overall, he said, it’s a ratio of 1 officer to every 1,000 participants.

In 2012, there were about 350 arrests and citations during the event which included drug violations. Love said that they will use a variety of techniques to police the event and ensure compliance which includes K-9 canines and some searches where merited.

When it comes to searches of persons or vehicles conducted on the playa, Machado said that they are bound by certain laws and search and seizure limitations with what officers can and cannot do. He said they are not going to step out of the scope of that.

Love said federally it would be a violation of the Fourth Amendment to conduct an illegal search and a violation of constitutional rights because the officer would be operating outside of their authority

More: http://www.rgj.com/article/20130823/EVENTS04/308230039

 

[Wayne C]

Suppose 200 of those tickets were for possession of marijuana. Each ticket is $515.00, so that's $103,000 for the MAN on marijuana tickets alone...makes me sick

 

[my3rdeye]

Never heard any follow up horror stories, maybe the man chilled out? A fluff piece but kind of nice


The Day the Man Came to Burning Man

By L.J. Williamson Thu., Sep. 12 2013 at 4:00 AM

Burning Man's reputation for bacchanalian revelry is well deserved. The festival is one of the planet's biggest parties, famously crescendoing in the immolation of a towering wooden stick figure on Saturday night, accompanied by a chaotic, high-firepower pyrotechnics display that, unlike most fireworks shows, feels all grand finale, all of the time.

Traditional Fourth of July shows go pop ... pop ... pop on a slow build to a short-lived frenzy. By contrast, when the Man burns, it's frenzy from the instant of ignition — and when he finally collapses into an immense, searing orange mass, a whole new frenzy begins, as audience members leap to their feet and rush toward the flames, running, circling, dancing, laughing, shielding their faces from the heat even as they push ever closer to it.

The entire weeklong event is noise, heat, dust, lights, chaos, color, cacophony. With the sole exception of the Temple.
See also: Photos of Burning Man's Temple
This too is built to be burned, on the final night of the event. The structure's design differs from year to year — 2013's Temple was pyramid-shaped; previous years' Temples have evoked Asian or European architecture — but the feeling is always the same. It's the only place in all of Black Rock City, population 68,000, where there is intentional silence. The thumping bass from DJs who spin around the clock, the random shouts and catcalls, the music, silliness and laughter seem far away here.

This is the place Burners come to mourn their dead.

When the Temple is lit afire on Sunday night, after half the revelers have already packed up and headed for home, this fire too will be immense. But it's watched in hushed reverence, its flames casting a glow on tear-streaked faces.

The Temple is an oasis of sadness in the relentless desert merriment. Punctuated by softly echoing gongs that only gradually come into the visitor's awareness, the silence here is unifying, an unspoken agreement among all present, among everyone who has ever experienced the pain of loss. Tucked into the beveled wood partitions and tacked onto the wooden walls are tokens of remembrance: photos, letters, collages, books, pieces of jewelry, smooth stones. There are Sharpies here, too, for scrawling messages. One says, "We miss you Taylor." Another says, "Grandma, you would have loved this."

Though few words are spoken, there is an air of understanding around the Temple, because most are here for the same reason: to grieve.

Late on Thursday afternoon of this year's fest, as the fierce Nevada sun had begun its descent toward the mountains and the winds, mostly calm to that point, began to whip up the week's first dust storm, those gathered at the Temple looked up to the sound of sirens.

Lifting bandannas to their faces, sliding goggles over their eyes to look through the murky, dust-swirled air, the scattered crowd began to thicken around the Temple's entrance, craning their necks to see a line of about 30 Bureau of Land Management vehicles slowly rolling toward the Temple

Prior to this year's event, rumors that there would be an unprecedented law enforcement crackdown were pervasive. The San Francisco Chronicle was reporting that participants could expect to get dinged even for minor infractions. Boing Boing's widely disseminated pre-event story quoted one worker on the build crew who warned, "The pigs are here. And uncommonly badge-heavy. ... In 18 years on the playa, I've never seen a more aggressive police presence than what's been going down today. Deeply upsetting, outrageous stuff."

The Bureau of Land Management SUVs approached the Temple with red lights spinning. Most of the vehicles had their dark-tinted windows rolled up. They looked inaccessible, intimidating.

The vehicles came to a stop near the Temple's gates, and about 50 officers exited, forming a double line flanking either side of the path leading inside. Some removed their hats. One called out, "Atten-hut!" and the line of rangers snapped to attention.

The militaristic procedure made the rangers seem, for a moment, even more out of place.

Then, a slender, 30-something woman emerged from the lead vehicle, dressed simply in jeans and a black T-shirt. She leaned heavily on the arm of a BLM special agent. In her free hand, she clutched a tissue. As the rangers and the crowd stood parted, she walked slowly inside the Temple.

Her name was Kelly Reynolds, and she was the widow of BLM Special Agent Michael Dwayne Bolinger, who died of a brain tumor in June. She had come to the Temple to place a plaque in his honor.

Bolinger, who had served multiple years on duty at Burning Man, loved the event. He was a UC Berkeley graduate, Reynolds explained, and although he attended in his capacity as a law enforcement officer, he had a deep and abiding appreciation for the festival.

At the moment Reynolds emerged, everyone understood. This was not a show of force but a show of support. The officers were there to honor one of their own — and to do so by participating in a Burning Man tradition.

As that comprehension filtered through the crowd, so did a sense of unity. Gone was the uneasy sense of us versus them, of counterculture versus law enforcement. At that moment, everyone present was simply human.

After placing the plaque atop a glossy black stone sculpture at the center of the Temple, a close friend and colleague briefly spoke about Bolinger, closing his remarks by saying, "Thank you for your show of respect to Kelly, and to all of us. And if you have a chance to meet one of the law enforcement officers that's working out here, go over and introduce yourself, and if you're so moved, express your appreciation for what they do out here so you can have a safe, fun event."

Immediately, a voice in the crowd shouted, "Thank you for your service!" The normally silent Temple erupted in thunderous applause.


http://blogs.laweekly.com/arts/2013/09/burning_man_temple.php

 

[neversickanymore]

Speaking of cops ripping people off.. i just saw a nice suv that was all painted with dare logos.. Now i do not think that children should be using drugs at all so this isn't about that.. it was also bragging how the vehicle was confiscated from a drug crime.. JUst seems to me that bragging how you stole a vehicle that was paid for buy the black market you created and protect is kinda stupid..

Ever get sick of getting told how stupid it is to take drugs by people that aren't smart enough to see even this?