Crime & Safety
Jail Time For Sideshow Spectators Reduced In Proposed Law
One supervisor said that drivers should be the target, not spectators.
ALAMEDA COUNTY — The Alameda County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted to reduce the jail time for spectators within 200 feet of a sideshow from 6 months to 3 months.
Board president Nate Miley said the original ordinance, which passed on July 11, inadvertently failed to include an amendment the board had voted on to lower the potential jail terms.
The updated ordinance passed by a 3-1 vote, with supervisors David Haubert, Lena Tam and Nate Miley voting yes. While Supervisor Elisa Márquez voted no, Supervisor Keith Carson was excused from the vote.
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Supervisor Marquez, who also voted against the original law on July 11, has said drivers must be the target, not spectators.
"Increasing patrol and blocking areas where sideshows are going to take place has been a mitigated effort," she said during the July 11 vote. "I would prefer to see more work done than enforcing this ordinance."
Some attorneys have questioned the legality of charging people with crimes who are on public property and may or may not be viewing a sideshow.
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"This ordinance has such the potential to do that," he said.
Aside from a possible 3-month jail term, violators of the law will can be charged with a misdemeanor and be fined up to $1,000.
Under the law, circumstances to prove a violation include evidence of prior acts of being present or attending a sideshow event in the last three years.
The ordinance takes effect on Aug. 9.
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