By Coy West
www.coywest.com
1/7/02

Introduction

There are a variety of businesses within the Austin city limits that have well-organized security teams and a long-standing tradition for safe, secure and legal events. These local businesses have successfully hosted a wide range of events, including fashion shows, rock concerts, sports events, and more. Starting in 1995, local venues opened their doors to showcase Electronic Music talent by organizing dance music events, electronic concerts and privately promoted parties. In some cases, these music events represented over 50% of the company's total profits, generating proceeds from rental fees, security fees and alcohol sales.

As of October 2001, local businesses shut down the bulk of their dance music activities due to the announcement of a local DEA/APD campaign to crackdown on ecstasy use. In this regard, the Austin Police Department cites the Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code 125.001, which holds venue owners and promoters accountable for the illegal drug activities of their patrons. This code calls for the fining and possible shut down of any venue where regular drug activities are observed. During the summer of 2001, the Austin Police Department refused to allow off-duty police officers from providing security services for dance music events, thereby hanging the full responsibility of security on the shoulders of the businesses.

Similarly, the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission utilizes a code that imposes fines or revokes alcohol licenses from establishments where narcotics have been discovered either through the arrest of a patron or from law enforcement searches.

The DEA encourages local law enforcement and regulatory agencies to apply pressure to businesses that host dance music events through the passing of legislation that restricts the activities of "rave clubs" or by seizing land and property through the use of local nuisance abatement laws as described above. The details of this technique can be found in Section 3 of the Ecstasy Prevention Act of 2001 - S.1208 / HR. 2582, which clearly awards federal funds to "communities that have taken measures to combat club drug use, including passing ordinances restricting rave clubs, increasing law enforcement on Ecstasy, and seizing lands under nuisance abatement laws to make new restrictions on an establishment's use."

Putting it simply, the federal government uses heavy incentives to reward local law enforcement and regulatory agencies for standing tough on dance music events where the suspicion of ecstasy use may be high. This in turn places a heavier burden on the businesses by challenging them to further intensify security measures at dance music events in order to display an even tougher stance on drugs.

ANC Meets the APD

Since the announcement of this multi-tiered strategy against club drugs like ecstasy, the local industry witnessed a marked decline in dance music events of all kinds. The general feeling of the public was such that most businesses stopped hosting events within the city limits in fear of a comprehensive campaign in court that could be waged against them. Likewise, the few music events that occurred between the months of October to January saw smaller attendance due to patrons' fears that any purchase made on a ticket would be a waste of money should the event be shut down.

Representatives from the Austin Nightlife Coalition met with city officials on January 7th, 2002 to discuss the industry's concerns associated with the current crackdown. The ANC presented the following fears of the local Electronic Music Industry:

1. Businesses that host electronic music events fear risking massive investments if, by chance, drugs are found on music patrons during an undercover drug operation. Should the authorities decide, they could shut down the event, at which point the promoter or venue would incur massive financial losses. The businesses also fear that as a result of the incident the police might regard them as being soft on drugs, despite the presence of bonded and licensed security teams that search for drugs and remove drug users from the venue.

2. Should the venue security staff discover drugs during the course of an event, and should the police be notified as is required by law, businesses fear that the TABC, DEA and APD could use the incident to pursue legal action against these businesses even though they've made every attempt to work with the authorities and intensify security.

3. If multiple drug arrests are made over a period of time, the businesses fear that they could be listed as a "venue of public nuisance" and face fines or loss of their establishment despite multiple efforts to cooperate with the authorities and intensify security.

In discussing these topics, the ANC also presented the fear that there would be additional financial losses throughout the city of Austin if the crackdown continued to pressure promoters to refrain from hosting events. The crackdown has already produced major losses for venues, performers and promoters whose livelihoods revolve around dance music events.

Response from the City

The city officials expressed their support of the Austin Nightlife Coalition's efforts to mediate in this regard. They also explained that this crackdown was in no way intended to permanently stop dance music events from occurring within the Austin city limits. On the contrary, they encouraged promoters and businesses to continue hosting as many events as they could so long as more steps were taken to prevent drugs from getting into the venues. They believe the key issues are tighter security, better event coordinating, and more communication with the city. Commander Dahlstrom stated it best by saying, "You can have raves 24 hours a day, 8 days a week, so long as they're clean."

The following suggestions were discussed as recommendations to help local businesses avoid prosecution under the current crackdown:

1. Intensify security efforts at dance music events - this would include more thorough searches of music patrons upon entry to an event and wider patrol of the venue in order to curb drug activities. Although APD will no longer provide security for dance music events, the police made it clear that they might be present to conduct undercover operations and/or inspect the behaviors of the promoters and patrons. Likewise, it was suggested that promoters notify the city about any planned events so as to formally invite the police to conduct any review they felt necessary.

2. Voluntarily enforce age limits - although the police did not outright ban minors from attending events; they expressed deep concerns about any all night event that did not comply with local curfew laws. The safety of minors at dance music events is a significant issue for parents and city officials, considering the drug activities that have occurred in the past. Likewise, businesses that open their doors to kids under the age of 17 add more liability to their events by drawing the attention of the media and law enforcement.

3. Remove drug dealers from the events - the APD and DEA urge local businesses to instruct their security to take a tough stand on drug use inside a dance music event. If security discovers a person dealing drugs or openly using drugs, it is recommended that they apprehend the person, remove them from the event and call the police.

4. Ensure that dance music events are properly organized based on current codes for public gatherings - the Austin Fire Marshall and the APD encourage businesses to comply with city laws regarding health, fire safety and maximum capacity codes. Likewise, additional steps should be taken to ensure the comfort and safety of patrons in regard to over-heating and exhaustion, which have caused casualties at past events. The Austin Nightlife Coalition presented a draft of recommendations in this regard, which city officials approved as a good outline for businesses to use.

During the meeting, city officials stated that they were not out to kill businesses. In fact, they encouraged electronic music businesses to "do what they have to do", but they advise them to be more responsible in handling future events so as to minimize the risks associated with drug activities.

Lieutenant John Colunga of the Narcotics branch of the Organized Crime Unit offered this challenge to local businesses, "We're not out here to put people out of business; instead, we want you to put US out of business". He suggested that promoters take every step possible to ensure that the police would not find heavy drug use at the events. Should police go to an event and make only a few arrests or discover minor evidence of drugs, and if the promoter has exhibited efforts to control drugs, city officials stated that they would complete their investigation of the event and move on to another area in town. Thus, they assured the Austin Nightlife Coalition that proper security and tighter event coordinating would convince law enforcement to leave the raves alone.

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