New Year's Eve hangover could be a long one

New Year's Eve scofflaws who find themselves before Tahoe Township Justice of the Peace Richard Glasson receive a variety of sentences.

Glasson said his judicial options are designed to keep the court system from getting clogged, and to make sure offenders think twice before over-celebrating next year.

Violators are ordered to court beginning Feb. 9.

A defendant from out of the area charged with a minor offense may plead guilty by mail if they include any fines with the guilty plea.

"That has unclogged the court from having all day-long trespassing and disorderly conduct hearings," Glasson said.

A court appearance is mandatory for anyone arrested for minor consuming.

"They have to come back," Glasson said. "For New Year's Eve infractions, community service is required and they have to publish a 4-by-6-inch advertisement in their college newspaper or hometown newspaper that they misbehaved and that you don't come here to do that."

Glasson has imposed the sentence for seven years.

"Since then, we haven't had anybody from Chico State arrested. Either they stopped coming here, or they stopped coming here and getting in trouble," Glasson said. "For a couple of years, we were getting all these arrests from Chico State. One year, the published ads covered a whole page in the college newspaper."

If someone is convicted of disorderly conduct, Glasson said they usually receive a suspended 10-day sentence that includes keeping the offender out of clubs and casinos in Douglas County for one year.

The suspended sentence serves as a deterrent, he said.

Glasson said he's seen a decrease in the number of arrests over the years which he attributes to law enforcement officers' expertise in controlling the crowd.

"Over the years, they've become better at controlling the crowd or allowing the crowd to control themselves. Arrests have been replaced by citations. They identify the troublemakers early and arrest them expeditiously getting them out of the area," he said.

He has witnessed an increase in the number of 18-to-21-year-olds getting arrested.

"We classify anyone under 24 as a 'rocket docket,'" Glasson said.

That means there are no extensions for their court appearances without good cause.

"We've found that if a young person is able to delay justice, they never take it seriously. We like to see arraignment through trial within a month," Glasson said.