Del Norte’s legal counsel called the new fireworks ordinance an administrative tool that uses fines to discourage people from bringing their Roman candles, sky rockets and other “dangerous” pyrotechnics into the community.
California law already makes it a crime to possess “dangerous fireworks,” County Counsel Jacqueline Roberts said Tuesday. These include sky rockets, bottle rockets, Roman candles, aerial shells, firecrackers and other pyrotechnics that explode, go in the air or move on the ground in an uncontrollable manner.
Possessing less than 2,000 pounds in California is “just a misdemeanor,” Roberts told supervisors.
“What this ordinance does is give the county an administrative way of dealing with them — through the fine process,” she said. “It’s sort of another tool in our tool belt to try to deal with the dangerous fireworks situation in town because, as you know, it’s difficult to prosecute criminally, especially when you’re dealing with something as low-level as a misdemeanor. But, perhaps if someone is getting a $1,000 fine, it might deter that behavior.”
The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the new regulations about three months after a fireworks explosion created a mass casualty incident on South Beach during the Fourth of July.
The explosion sent about 14 people to the hospital including a 3-year-old boy.
Following the incident, the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office arrested Levi Howand-Wayne Mills and Megan Warner, charging them with illegally possessing explosives, selling dangerous fireworks and willful cruelty to a child.
According to District Attorney Katherine Micks, the two suspects will appear in court for a readiness hearing on Nov. 18 and, possibly, a preliminary hearing on Nov. 19.
Del Norte County’s ordinance imposes fines for anyone possessing, using, selling, storing and/or displaying dangerous fireworks. Those fines, including a late charge, are $1,250 for a first offense, $2,500 for a second offense and $4,000 for a third offense.
The county’s regulations are consistent with an ordinance Crescent City has on the books, District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey said. It also coincides with a proposed ordinance the Harbor District Board of Commissioners is considering, though commissioners have called for banning all fireworks in the marina and at Whaler Island.
According to Starkey, that proposed ban is similar to the prohibition Del Norte has against all fireworks at its campgrounds, including those bearing the “Safe and Sane” seal.
“While lots of us prefer less government, unfortunately because of the incident that happened last Fourth of July, I don’t think we can turn a blind eye anymore,” she said. “I think that we have to come out and respond to what the public is asking of us.”
Roberts said the ordinance shouldn’t impact local churches and other organizations who raise funds through the sale of Safe and Sane fireworks in the week leading up to the holiday.
“You can’t get a permit to sell fireworks in the State of California unless they’re Safe and Sane,” she said.
County resident and frequent public commenter, Sam Strait, was skeptical of how effective the ordinance would be. Though Board Chairman Dean Wilson tried to explain that law enforcement did act by arresting the two suspects connected with the fireworks explosion on South Beach, Strait pointed out that the sheriff’s office lacks the staff to prevent such an incident.
Another resident, Alicia Williams, said she met with Crescent City Manager Eric Wier and Police Chief Richard Griffin about creating a block party environment that revolves around the use of Safe and Sane fireworks. She said there could be free giveaways and raffles, but noted that it would be an investment.
Williams also recommended setting up a hotline for people to report illegal firework use in their community and with a monetary award for tips that lead to their confiscation.
