Something that BMorg are always attempting to hush up are the details of the annual arrests. It used to be reported every year in the Reno Gazette-Journal, but since they appointed dedicated Burning Man beat reporter Jenny Kane that type of coverage has stopped. We have to try to piece the information together however we can.
I filed a FOIA request in January to get the 2017 arrest data from the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office, but so far they haven’t even acknowledged it. Thanks very much to our source DS who sent us the 2015, 2016, and some 2017 information below. The information we received includes the names of all people arrested in 2015 and 2017 and what they were charged with, compiled from the local paper. Don’t panic! We won’t be publishing the names. We hope to get more 2017 information soon.
The official reports confirm a shockingly large number of sexual assaults – 15 in 2015, 11 in 2016 – and way more missing children than were previously reported. The rapes, not prosecuted; the children (thankfully) all found. No wonder BMorg wanted this hushed up. Sexual offenders who fail to register are a recurring problem. Kidnapping, attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, domestic violence, jailbreaks, and celebrities with armed bodyguards are all issues at Black Rock City. Don’t think that just because you’re “home”, that means you are safe – and don’t think for a moment that having a rule “no guns” means there are no guns there.
In fact, the Sheriff specifically states that he does not believe he can provide for the safety of Burners.
Image: Steemkr
BMorg vs PCSO
This has been an ongoing battle for many years. The cops think they should get more money as the festival gets bigger and goes for longer, BMorg thinks they should keep all the money for themselves to give to artists and make the world a better place. BMorg has big lawyers and political clout, they tell the Sheriff where to stick it, so to meet the budget required the Sheriff’s Office feels compelled to arrest and cite more Burners – to make their side of the argument stronger. “Look at all these criminals, our budget’s not big enough!”. Burners who pay $500-$1200 a ticket are thus used as pawns in an argument that people with $40 million per year of ticket money are having with local officials over 50 grand.
Pershing County normally has a population of approximately 6,800 people within the County. This population includes approximately 1,600 inmates incarcerated at the [gated community of the] Lovelock Correctional Center. For this population, the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office has 13 full time Sworn Law Enforcement Deputies, including the Sheriff, to perform all of the duties statutorily mandated for the Sheriff’s Office. This equates to approximately 1 Deputy for every 400 persons permanently residing in Pershing County, minus those incarcerated.
During the approximate 10-12 days of the active portion of the Burning Man Festival, the population of just the Festival balloons to upwards of 80,000+ persons. Still with only the 13 Sworn Full-Time Deputies within the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office. Based on this population, it would appear the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office would need to have approximately 200 Deputies to provide similar staffing for the visitors to the Burning Man Festival. However, Burning Man provides approximately 800+ ‘Black Rock Rangers’. These employees of Burning Man are mostly made up of volunteers, some of whom have very limited training, to interact with the population and attempt to mitigate issues before they rise to the level of a Law Enforcement Response. Some of the Rangers are trained enough to provide a force multiplication, to a limited extent, for Law Enforcement.
The Problem, In a Few Charts
2015 Report – Highlights
- 1 death before the event
- 15 sexual assaults reported
- sex offender failed to register
- 6 children went missing – all found
- incident with nude man and his nude 4 year old child at adult event
- 1 arrest for kidnapping
- celebrities bringing armed bodyguards
- an inmate tried to escape from the temporary jail
- event ran for 9 days, previous discussions were around 7
- big load on Sheriff’s office while construction/tear down happening
- year end load processing all criminal cases, court dates etc
- “the comradery [sic] which was built during this event will extend through the state” – from cops, Feds, agencies working together
- integration with Humboldt Medical Team, who were kicked out for CrowdRX
You are more likely to get a citation from the BLM than the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office. The cops issued 143 citations and 175 verbal warnings. That makes 677 citations total for 2015, plus 43 arrests
2015 Sheriff’s Report:
2016 Sheriff’s Report – Highlights
The Sheriff actually says that after consulting with “entities” about Burning Man’s ability to deal with a critical incident like a mass casualty event, the results were “extremely dismal” and that he cannot in good conscience provide adequate safety to citizens attending the event.
9 people including Burning Man organization employees were arrested on the site before the event began, charged with “possessing trafficking levels of narcotics”
Other highlights
- 46 arrrests (43 in 2015)
- 152 citations (+326 BLM, total 478)
- sex offenders failing to register
- 11 sexual assaults reported
- 1 arrest on playa
- 2 reports after the festival, after victim returned to Reno and went to hospital for treatment – started by Reno PD
- several reports of missing or lost children – not just the single Amber Alert we were told about, that closed exodus for 8 hours
2016 Sheriff’s Report
2016 Burning Man Response
I have a couple of questions for the author I’d like to ask in private if that’s ok.
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Sadly, the numbers of sexual assaults you quote don’t seem that large to me for a city of 60,000 people over the course of 7-14 days. That’s not to say more work isn’t needed, but (as always) your post seems to be an indictment of the BMORG for ignoring the sexual assault issue, or for somehow creating an environment that encourages sexual assault. Again, ever one assault is too many, but for a gathering of humans as large as and for a duration of Burning Man, it’s about par for the course, sadly.
From BMorg – BRC – Marnee Benson February 2017 response to Pershing County Sheriff’s PMS 2016: Rape occurs every five hours and 11 minutes in Nevada, but in Black Rock City there has never been more than one arrest for any type of sexual assault. Most of these sexual assault charges do not rise to the level of felony rape.
Also: This event is eight days long…
Referencing 2015 Crime In Nevada DPS (FBI UCRs) Unified Crime Report for the year
Time clock on pg 37 of 487
2015 Nevada population 2,871,934
Playa peak population for 2016 was 76,330
Using the inspiration of BRC’s Marnee Benson’s 2017 comparison of Black Rock City to Nevada’s 2015 UCRs
Oakland (85 homicides) is safer than Alameda County (119 homicides) and California (1,861 homicides)
Salinas (40 homicides) is safer than Monterey County (60 homicides) and California (1,861 homicides)
Nationally: (Homicides per 100,000)
#17 Oakland (20.33) Alameda County (7.3)
#9 Salinas (25.29) Monterey County (13.8)
California (4.8)
As a comparison:
2017 The most sexual assaults any neighborhood in Denver has had this year is Five Points, with 12. Denver has had 252 sexual assaults reported so far this year, an average of 57.6 per month / 1.9 per day.
https://crime.denverpost.com/crime/sexual-assault/
8 rapes in 6 days: Spate of sexual violence continues in Haryana, three more rapes reported in last 24 hours
https://www.firstpost.com/india/8-rapes-in-6-days-spate-of-sexual-violence-continues-in-haryana-three-more-rapes-reported-in-last-24-hours-4309847.html
5 rapes in 8 days shock Rewari
http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/haryana/crime/5-rapes-in-8-days-shock-rewari/35617.html
You point being? Because we know you support everything Larry did and the work of the good folks at the Burning Man project as you have stated in your not-at-all-hypocitical article about Larry.
Interesting world that you live in. All is ad hominem, and facts and the information they provide have to fit into an ad hominem model. Thinking is hard; unthinking dogma is easy – but far more stressful.
Sorry. I can’t quite figure out what you are trying to say.
Look up “ad hominem.”
You sound like a freshman PE major in his critical thinking class using the term “ad hominem” because it’s Latin and sounds cool and you don’t think people really know what it means because you don’t. But you may, in fact, be talking to someone who majored in ethics and you really sound like an idiot. That would be an ad hominem attack. Pointing out obvious hypocrisy is not.
Interesting world that you live in. All is based on who is making a statement, and facts and the information they provide have to be dicrounted or modified to first of all fit into who is making a statement. Thinking is hard; unthinking dogma is easy – but far more stressful.
You are adorable
BTW…”Facts” include context. Without context it’s just spin.
F = m x a
You can’t push with a rope.
I don’t think Newtonian physics really applies here. Nice intellectual gaslight though.
Kudos for gaining this information, burnersxxx, and kudos to your source, gaining this information in due of Pershing County meetings, and public records. My belief is the eleventh principle might be of Consent, and, in the manner of the other eleventh principle, Gratitude is due to the near to 800 Black Rock Rangers for assisting Burners for their safety.
The twenty six reported sexual assaults, within 2015, and 2016, are twenty six too many. As Burning Man becomes most similar to Coachella in many manners, Coachella has a problem in due of sexual assaults, but most are of the sexual harassment manner. My belief is of the kidnapping, attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, jailbreak, and celebrities with armed bodyguards are solely one, or two occurrences, in the manner of the stolen truck, at the airport, is the attempted murder and the assault with a deadly weapon, and many minors desire to lose their parents at a festival.
It is humorous of the Sheriff complained of the $33,510.00 cost of an inmate flown to the Renown Medical Center. Might this be the 110 pound woman whom was injected with ketamine, by a Sheriff Deputy, purposed to gain her compliance, and she stopped breathing? Might this be the attempted murder of which he states?
As I stated prior, in despite of them stating of it is not true, many of the police, of both the Pershing County Sheriff Deputies, and of the BLM Rangers, view Burners in the same manner as Robert Mueller views President Donald Trump, solely as targets. Most Burners are of the belief they have white privilege, but, in Black Rock City, and, in particular, on Gate Road near to Greeters, and near to the crowds at the 10:00 and 2:00 sound camps, white Burners have no more privilege than black people in Ferguson, Missouri, most especially in due of a sheriff whose beliefs are most similar to sheriffs within the U.S. South of the 1950s and 1960s. Their care is near to solely in regards of the number of Burners they might bust for drugs.
New Burners are of the need to know of the proper manner of how to be safe, from sexual assault, and from the police. When the information upon the 179 arrests within 2017 is gained, might it be stated in terms of the number of Burners arrested for prescriptions not in the original canister, marijuana of more than one ounce being stated as narcotics for sale, arson in due of artists burning of their own art, the Nevada Highway Patrol, with the PCSO, arresting Burners upon I80 near to Lovelock, and similar?
“It is humorous of the Sheriff complained of the $33,510.00 cost of an inmate flown to the Renown Medical Center. Might this be the 110 pound woman whom was injected with ketamine, by a Sheriff Deputy, purposed to gain her compliance, and she stopped breathing? Might this be the attempted murder of which he states?”
NO CrowdRX follows the same protocol used by the Paramedic that saved the life of 110 LB she-Hulk from Excited Delirium. She wasn’t arrested and filed no complaint. BRC had the matter investigated repeatedly waiting until Brigadoon/Black Rock City had faded from existence, Don’t be surprised to see HGH there this year to supplement CrowdRX.
As I understand it; At CrowdRX’s direction the expense and flight of the Burner that was grabbing women and dragging them to a tent, not sure if he was rapist, destroyed part of the jail and tried to escape. Believe he was released to the streets of Reno by the hospital. As fiscal fiduciary for the taxpayers of Pershing County after challenged the bill it was taken care of and not paid by Pershing County as an indigent expense for the self inflicted wounds of an attempted escaping prisoner.
Maybe more Black Rock Rangers are needed with the soaring increase of arrest the last two years. To better educate regarding the enforcement of Nevada Law and of course to protect the brand.
Much obliged of the information of the cost of the flight to Reno was in due of a different person. Why was the paperwork not done, by the PCSO, purposed for the much deserved prisoner sent to jail, after the hospital? Except of your Sheriff did not hire the retired Reno police officers, of which, they were near to the sole police, upon the playa, whom cared in regards of anything other of busting Burners for drugs.
In regards of the Sheriff Deputy Paramedic whom you state ‘saved the life of a 110 LB she-Hulk from Excited Delirium’, a term mostly utilized by Police, and Tazer International, purposed to justify people dying in police custody, by injecting her with an operating room drug purposed to knock patients out, and solely with a proper doctor, and breathing machine, present, saved by injecting her with the drug stopping her breathing, why was she priorly not driven to the awesome medical tent, and doctors, of CrowdRX within 2015? I now understand of the rationale of Burning Man firing your mates of HGH.
In due of your comments, including of the of comment of the soaring increase of arrest, by your mates, the last two years, in due of Sheriff Allen, thank you for being an awesome example of the rationale why new Burners are of the need to know of the proper manner of how to protect themselves from the police.
Thank you, burnersxxx, for gaining the information, and penning an article upon this subject, of which, the BMOrg desires to hide, thusly, leading the lambs to the slaughter.
I find your syntax confusing. Disagree with your conclusions, don’t support your assumptions and generally it seems you don’t let facts interfere with either your feelings or statements. Though I am envious of your flexibility. I can’t get my head where you have yours. As to new Burners protecting themselves from Law Enforcement: That is super simple don’t violate Nevada Law and common courtesy is always a good place to start. G’day Mate
Links for new Burners
New sheriff says he’ll crack down on Burning Man crime 2015/08/22 Sheriff Allen replaced the most professional Sheriff Machado within 2015. ‘Were Burning Man to provide more funding to the county, Allen would also hire more officers, 100 more to be specific’
Prepare for the Playa Police [2015 Update]
24 Tips from Burners on Gate Safety
2009 Afterburn Report-Playa SafetyWhen Burning Man communicated properly with the Burner community, and now Sheriff Allen was a deputy of PCSO Sheriff Skinner, the PCSO section states,
‘The PCSO LEO team arrived on playa with what appeared to be a rather specific agenda. This agenda seemed to be fueled by their sense of morality and personal values, and they seemed intent upon imposing that set of values and moral judgments on the Burning Man community and the citizens of Black Rock City. The specific incidences and issues will not be listed here, but it can be reported that the moral code they chose to impose was characterized by behaviors that could be described as consistent and by an attitude that could be characterized as fervent and zealous.’
2010 Afterburn Report-Playa SafetyThe PCSO brings horses to the playa for riot control. Other Burning Man permits, from the BLM, state the Unified Command is permitted to shut down Burning Man for civil unrest.
Rural Nevada sheriff defends I-80 drug stops where $60K-plus cash confiscated without arrests (Prior Sheriff Kilgore of the county besides Pershing County)The U.S. Congress passed a law in due of this, but, Boots was a playa police dog. Burners with Colorado licence plates most be most aware, and obey all traffic laws. I am curious of the 2017 arrests, might there be felony arrests for trafficking in due of marijuana of more than one ounce upon I80 within Pershing County?
By appearances, the BLM issues hundreds of citations, and the PCSO issues citations, and does arrests. Might Burners need assistance of any manner, go to the Black Rock City Rangers, they are Burners, and care about our safety.
Your article:
February 26, 2007
Death by Excited Delirium: Diagnosis or Coverup?
Other more current:
2014 Nov 11.
Prehospital Use of IM Ketamine for Sedation of Violent and Agitated Patients
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4251212/
Pharmacotherapy. 2018 Jan;38(1):139-151. doi: 10.1002/phar.2060. Epub 2017 Dec 22.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29136301
May 18th, 2015 | Expert Peer Reviewed (Clinical), Neurology, Tox & Medications
https://www.aliem.com/2015/05/ketamine-for-excited-delirium-syndrome/
Much obliged for your comment, it shows the beliefs of the Pershing County Sheriff Office, of Lovelock, Nevada well. The comment has five fake studies, of solely upon near to two hundred people, upon the fake Excited Delirium, after ketamine was injected into them prior of driving them to a proper hospital. Near to one half of them were of the need of a breathing tube placed within their throat, purposed so they would live, when they arrived at the hospital, in despite of, ‘First do no harm’.
Most of the jobs in Lovelock are in due of the Lovelock Federal Prison, and beliefs of many of the people of Lovelock are the beliefs of prison guards, of the need of being in total control, and the beliefs of us versus them, and the beliefs of do not associate with, or humanise, the prisoners, or of the targets of the police. These beliefs are not the beliefs of proper police within a city, most especially, within a city of the manner of Black Rock City. A horrible item, is of Sheriff Allen pens his requests of his desire to be in total control towards the BLM administrator of Black Rock City, thusly, the BLM administrator pens the requests in regards of the desire to be in control, into the Burning Man Festival permit each burn. No one is watching the watchmen. Permitting prison guards near to total authority is a bad idea
When the Sheriff Deputy Paramedic injected the ‘110 pound she-Hulk’ with ketamine, of which, near to three years after, they still defend their rubbish actions, the Sheriff Deputy in control might have stated,
‘You gonna get used to wearing them chains after
a whileyou wake up,LukeBurner. Don’t you never stop listening to them clinking, ’cause they gonna remind you what I been saying for your own good.What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate. Some
menBurners you just can’t reach. So you get what wehad here last weekhave here, which is the wayhethe Burners wants it. Well,heBurners gets it. I don’t like it any more than youmenBurners.’Before going to Burning Man, women should know that it’s basically a rape festival. It’s not uncommon to see women being dragged back to some camp in a classic Jesus sailor pose, feet dragging, after being drugged by military-grade GHB slipped into their drinks. It’s almost impossible not not get raped at Burning Man. My GF was raped 3 times on her way to the portapotties on her first night. It becomes normal after a while, though.
Burning Man is a big city and everyone should exercise the same caution they would exercise in any big city.
Except everyone is getting raped at Burning Man.
It happens. Everyone should be aware it happens. There is no evidence it happens more than any other city of 70,000. I know hundreds of burners and I don’t know anyone this has happened to.
Published March 12, 2014 Associated Press
WINNEMUCCA, Nev. – Humboldt County Sheriff Ed Kilgore is defending the practice of stopping suspected drug traffickers on U.S. Interstate 80 and confiscating tens of thousands of dollars even if no criminal charges are filed.
Current Sheriff Mike Allen since January 2015
Thanks for gathering and posting this.