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Las Vegas parks arrests down 9%, but Justice Levitt Park remains a hotspot, police say
Summary
A Las Vegas deputy marshal told the Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission that citywide park arrests and citations are down about 9% year to date, while Justice Levitt Park in Ward 3 continues to generate the most calls for service and enforcement activity.
Lieutenant Sarkis, a deputy marshal filling in for Lieutenant Burdette, told the Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission that year-to-date arrests and citations at city parks fell by roughly 9% and that most violations are people remaining in parks after hours.
"As you guys can tell, based on this report here, our year to date arrests and citations, city parks kinda went down by 9%," Lieutenant Sarkis said, adding that the department is concentrating enforcement at known hot spots.
Sarkis and commissioners described which parks generate the most calls. In Ward 1 he listed Rotary Park, Rainbow Family Park and Gary Dexter Park and said citations were up near a children’s-only park because of the proximity of a school. In Ward 3 he said Justice Levitt Park had produced "79 arrests and citations" year to date, a figure he called the reason for intensified focus there.
The deputy marshal enumerated common violation types: "remaining park after hours," unlawful presence in children's-only parks and "lodging without consent," which he described as taking up temporary residence in a park. He said officers typically give warnings before removal and that some increases in citations reflect extra patrols and training-unit activity rather than a spike in unaddressed crime.
Commissioners asked whether incidents logged for private businesses inside parks (for example, Big League Dreams at Freedom Park) are included; Sarkis said the department responds to those calls and they are included in the park totals. On juvenile dirt-bike complaints, he said officers avoid high-risk vehicle pursuits and attempt to follow up at residences instead.
The commission heard public praise for enforcement work in Ward 5 and an invitation from police for the public to report suspicious activity: "If they see something, call us," Sarkis said. The commission did not take any formal action on the report.
Next steps: commissioners and staff indicated interest in discussing camera options and other interventions at Justice Levitt Park in future meetings.
