San Jose police arrest 115 people, impound 30 vehicles during busy Cinco de Mayo weekend
SAN JOSE -- Authorities in San Jose on Monday summarized the results of enforcement in the South Bay during the Cinco de Mayo weekend as police employed "zero tolerance for criminal behavior" during festivities.
While the release issued Monday morning noted that "many events were peaceful and a majority of community members and visitors lawfully enjoyed the cultural celebration," there were some incidents that required law enforcement response as SJPD monitored Cinco de Mayo festivities in addition to regular calls for service.
"During the course of normal operations, SJPD patrol units observed several misdemeanors, felonies, reckless driving incidents, sideshow activity, and other quality of life crimes that required enforcement action in order to keep the peace," the release said.
While police did not provide any details on specific incidents that happened May 5-7 in the release, the department said officers responded to a total of 2,642 calls for service. There were a total of 115 arrests over the course of three days, with 30 vehicles impounded and 407 citations issued.
Police also said a total of six firearms were seized over the weekend.
State senator Dave Cortese and Assemblymember Ash Kalra are now investigating Caltrans' role in cutting off freeway access to east San Jose and the downtown area.
"Some of the information that we've seen and read so far from Caltrans is that they believed their orders were to stop people from the east side from going into downtown San Jose," Cortese said. "If that's not racism, I don't know what it is. Maybe it's geographic redlining. Whatever it is, it's unacceptable."
In their Monday press release, San Jose police said they have been using traffic diversions for two decades to reduce congestion and preserve public safety.
"In the years since this strategy has been utilized, we have seen a reduction in violent crime and gridlock traffic. San José residents can more easily move about and celebrate traditional Cinco de Mayo events, which is the main purpose of our efforts," the release said. "In no way is our response to Cinco de Mayo intended or designed to inhibit anyone's ability to celebrate the holiday. It is simply a proactive approach to increase public safety around an event that has historically drawn large crowds from outside the city, many of whom did not celebrate lawfully."