Here’s what the Idaho Falls’ citation and prosecution procedure entails for public gatherings
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IDAHO FALLS — The city of Idaho Falls has revealed the “citation and prosecution procedure” of its resolution to slow the spread of COVID-19.
At the Idaho Falls City Council meeting held Nov. 24, the council passed Resolution No. 2020-29. Part of the resolution states that “the city of Idaho Falls will develop and execute, by Dec. 1, 2020, a citation and prosecution procedure for organizers of public events involving attendees exceeding the number allowed to gather by the Governor of Idaho’s Rebound Idaho restrictions.”
RELATED: Idaho Falls City Council passes COVID-19 resolution; will develop citation procedure
City spokesman Bud Cranor said the Gov. Brad Little’s order is what establishes the limits on gatherings, and that order asks sheriffs and police to be its enforcement arm.
Little’s order states that “violation of or failure to comply with a mandatory provision of this order may constitute a misdemeanor punishable by fine, imprisonment, or both pursuant to Idaho Code 56-1003(7)(c).”
Cranor says the penalty for misdemeanor crimes is a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to six months of jail time, but what gets imposed is up to the judge.
“There will be people who aren’t happy with it, but if you go back and watch the video from the council meeting and from the work session prior to that council meeting, you’ll see the council was pretty clear that they were concerned enough that they thought even though people might be upset, they felt like they needed to do something,” Cranor told EastIdahoNews.com.
Listed below is the general process for citing an event organizer or venue under this resolution, according to a city of Idaho Falls news release:
- The city has a special events coordinator (SEC) who works with event planners and venues in the city to help permit and schedule special events. Event organizers should contact them for guidance on questions or concerns.
- The SEC will continue to work with Eastern Idaho Public Health, the city and others to help educate and inform venues and organizers of the rules and regulations as stated in orders from Gov. Brad Little and EIPH.
- If the Idaho Falls Police Department is made aware of events or venues that are meeting in violation of legally established orders, the SEC, EIPH or reporting entity will provide IFPD with as much information as possible about the alleged violation, including:
- Names and addresses of the event organizers;
- Name and address of the hosting venue;
- Date and time of the event; and
- Any other pertinent information available.
- IFPD will investigate the complaint. If a clear and significant violation is found to have occurred, IFPD may issue a citation to the event organizer and/or the venue that hosted the event, or they may submit the information to the prosecutor for review, per their normal processes.
No arrests, no shutdowns of gatherings
“How our normal process works for really anything that we do, (is) if an officer believes that they have probable cause or if there’s a situation that warrants it, they can give a citation right there,” IFPD Spokeswoman Jessica Clements said. “They can also do the investigation and take the information and give it to the prosecutor who can decide if they want to issue a criminal summons or a warrant, depending on whatever the topic at hand is.”
Clements says no arrests will be made for violation of this order, and IFPD will not shut down any gatherings.
“It would be, ‘Here’s your citation,’ and then that person can take that citation and discuss it with the judge at a later date to determine whether or not that the gathering was in violation (or) not (in) violation or whether it was a legal gathering,” she says. “They can have all that discussion with the judge.”
IFPD will respond to organized public events in violation of Little and EIPH’s orders based on group size, not at homes or for mask violations, she said.
Clements said that if you have questions about a specific event, do not call 911 or the police non-emergency number. Instead, call the city of Idaho Falls SEC at (208) 612-8831.
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