Although police reported more arrests from Saturday night’s Freakfest on Monday, bringing the total to 32, statistics only confirmed that Freakfest 2011 was one of the most subdued Madison Halloween in recent memory.
Police Department Public Information Officer Joel DeSpain said authorities were skeptical that arrest figures would decrease further from 2010’s total of 43, but the number of citations Saturday left officials surprised.
“[The 32 arrests] really, I think, speaks volumes about how this event has really turned around,” said DeSpain.
Before the rebranding of festivities in Madison as the officially-sanctioned Freakfest event in 2006, Halloween celebrations in Madison were often punctuated by rioting, looting and police using tear gas across State Street—most recently in 2005.
The 2011 event was a far cry from that. The 32 arrests made Saturday night, 25 offenders were cited and released, while 4 were sent to jail. The incident report listed 3 people as being sent to either the hospital or a detoxification center.
Revised citation figures put the total number of Freakfest citations at 46. According to DeSpain, citations can surpass the number of arrests made, as individuals can be issued more than one citation.
“Our arrests were behavior-based. It really has to do with how people are conducting themselves on the street,” DeSpain said. “The majority of people were arrested for underage drinking or open intoxicants.”
Along with the number of reported incidents, DeSpain said the kind of the quality of these violations was also indicative of Saturday’s relatively tame festivities. No significant incidents of battery, sexual assault or property damage were reported to authorities.
Frank Productions, the event promotions company contracted to administrate Freakfest, reported the sale of approximately 25,000-30,000 tickets for Saturday, down from 35,000 in 2010 and 44,000 in 2009.
“From a police perspective, that was a success. But the numbers were down, and that probably says something to Frank Productions,” DeSpain said.
