Praise — and complaints — follow first Black Spring Break under Biloxi’s event ordinances

This weekend’s crowd for Black Springs Break in Biloxi was smaller than the last several years and less violence was reported.

Councilman Paul Tisdale, who represents the area of Biloxi where spring break is held, said the weekend was “So much better this year,” under the city’s new special event regulations.

He estimated the crowds were a third of what they were in the past. The pedestrian tape along the sidewalks seemed to funnel people to crosswalks rather than seeing them dash across the four-lane highway at multiple points, he said.

One resident who lives near the beach told him it was the safest she felt during any of the big special events held in Biloxi.

Parking was a challenge and police were stationed at the entrances to neighborhoods that have only one way in and out to make sure people didn’t park there and block access. Several vehicles were towed in the area.

This was the first year Biloxi’s new event ordinances were in effect after one person was shot and killed during the event last year, and five more were shot and injured in Biloxi, including a Biloxi Police officer.

Biloxi Police Department is compiling a report on this year’s three-day event and Chief John Miller will release details on Tuesday.

One shot at pop-up party

The pop-up parties Miller said he was concerned about became a problem for Gulfport Police, who were called to Martin Luther King Boulevard on Saturday night and found a teen from Georgia with an apparent gunshot wound to his arm.

The 15-year-old was very uncooperative with investigators, said Gulfport Police Lt. Jason DuCré, and it was unclear what happened during a pop-up party in the area.

“When we got there everyone scattered and drove away,” he said.

“We don’t know if there is a shooter,” DuCré said, or if the teen injured himself.

He didn’t have a gun, DuCré said, but the teen was wanted in Georgia for another gun crime.

He was released to a family member shortly after being brought to the hospital.

“We had several random pop-up parties,” DuCré said. The parties are advertised on social media and those who sign up are texted a location.

The motorcycle club on Old Pass Road in Gulfport was one of those sites. Underage kids were there past curfew when police responded and shut it down, he said.

Too many rules?

Spring breakers said they understood the need for regulations , but objected to the lack of parking and being told to turn down the music.

Yunni Bun, a spring breaker from Atlanta, sat by the beach with her friends.

“It’s a slow start and I think the city of Biloxi is doing the best to try to keep their community safe, but once you get a bunch of young people in the sun for some fun its a force to be reckoned with, you can’t stop people coming together,” she said.

John Lewis drove to Biloxi from Lake Charles, Louisiana, and said he was upset with the lack of parking and the large police presence.

“I’m not ever coming back,” he said.

What about next year?

The organizers of Black Spring Break did not respond to a request for information about the weekend.

Rep. Jeffrey Hulum III, D-Gulfport, sent out a media statement about interactions between spring breakers and police.

“On one hand, the images and first hand accounts from this weekend are unacceptable and provide a poor representation of what our community has to offer,” he said.

“The spring break organizers, community stakeholders and law enforcement must work together in order to make this annual spring break week a fair, safe and welcome experience for everyone,” Hulum said.

The lack of parking wasn’t a city issue, but the problem of the organizers, said Jerry Creel, Biloxi community development director. His department oversees the special events committee and he said Monday morning,”I haven’t had any complaint calls.”

The promoters of spring break told the special events official that someone else was handling parking for the event. Creel said it can’t be two separate groups, not working together, but instead one organizer needs to address all the issues.

“I think the promoter will study the ordinances a little closer,” Tisdale said, then work with the special events committee and meet the deadlines before next year’s event.

Other groups planning festivals and parades in Biloxi also should start working with the committee to meet the regulations well before their events, he said.

Sun Herald photojournalist Hannah Ruhoff contributed to this article.

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