Bars, students and cops ready for Grand Prix

Everyone at the West Lafayette Bar Coalition meeting on Tuesday hoped for a fun — and safe — Grand Prix weekend, but everyone there knew that some partygoers will go to jail before Monday morning dawns.

For those people, an arrest this weekend means saving the date for initial hearings on June 1 or June 8.

West Lafayette police Chief Jason Dombkowski said his department's alcohol-related arrests have dropped nearly 60 percent since 2007. Starting in 2008, West Side officers focused on students' safety and resolving problems without carting revelers off to jail. But that's not a pass for the weekend.

"Arrests are a lot fewer," Dombkowski said, "but there is a lot more celebration going on, especially in the Village/Levee area, than we've ever had."

West Lafayette and Purdue police plan to be out in force for the last hurrah of the Purdue University school year, and Indiana Excise Police will have uniformed and undercover officers working Grand Prix weekend.

Purdue police Chief John Cox said, "We're just looking for disturbances — drunks twisting off stop signs, fights."

If Grand Prix revelers keep parties to manageable numbers and don't get too loud, they'll likely avoid a visit from police, Cox said. Oh, and stay off roofs. Cox said that's a guaranteed visit from officers, assuming an ambulance isn't needed first.

For police — as it is for students and bar owners — the weekend begins in earnest Thursday, but while students are hitting the bars, police will set up a sobriety checkpoint near campus.

Excise police Sgt. John Copeland had some words of advice for bar owners and their employees:

"If you're uncomfortable with an ID, don't accept it," Copeland said. "If a person standing outside and they want to come into your place and they seem to be intoxicated, that's a liability that you do not want. Don't be afraid to say no.

"A person is getting ready to ask for another alcoholic beverage and they appear to be intoxicated, say no."

For Purdue students who say "no" to alcohol, there are plenty of alternatives.

"I work with the groups to help them put on events for the student body to provide alcohol-free events," said Martia King, Purdue Student Activities and Organizations office.

The Grand Alternative events kicked off last weekend and runs through Saturday night. The student-run events include outdoor movies, concerts, free pancake breakfasts and karaoke events, King said.