Police break up beach melee

Following a number of beach brawls that broke out between large groups of young people on Memorial Day, Long Beach Police and city officials have vowed to take a “zero tolerance” policy to stave off future altercations.

Long Beach Police Department Deputy Inspector Bruce Meyer said that a number of fights took place on May 30, most of which occurred near the Riverside and Edwards Boulevard beaches at around 6 p.m.

“There were a number of disturbances that occurred at the same time at the end of the beach day,” Meyer said, “and currently, we are in the process of taking numerous steps to address what had happened.”

Meyer said that hundreds of young people, mostly from nearby communities, came to the beaches and that many in those groups became involved in a number of altercations. He said that police were called in to address the incidents, which required the assistance of Nassau County police.

Meyer said that no injuries were reported, and, while no one was arrested in connection with the fighting, one man was arrested for marijuana possession.

In addition to the altercations, Meyer said that a number of young people in the raucous groups caused quality-of-life disturbances, such as blocking the bike lanes on the boardwalk.

“We know that quality-of-life issues are paramount to the public, and we are going to have a zero tolerance approach to quality-of-life violations on the boardwalk,” Meyer said. “Some kids were going up there with no regard for other people.”

Meyer said police dispersed the crowds, but altercations spilled out on the street and at the bus depot.

“Moving them along, a lot did go to the bus depot, which tells me they were not local kids,” Meyer said. “As [police] were dispersing the groups and moving them along, there was a crowd situation that developed as a result of the N15 running on a holiday schedule.”

Meyer said that police officers and members of the Street Crimes Unit are stepping up enforcement and executing a strategy to handle similar situations as the beach season kicks off.

“I think part of the problem was that we had brutal winter, and then all of sudden people were drawn to the beach,” Meyer said. “The quality-of-life violations were done by teens and young adults, and a good chunk of them were from out of town.”