Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
NYPD Plans St. Patrick's Day Booze Crackdown
By
Ben Muessig
Published Mar 16, 2010
Modified Mar 16, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Ben Muessig
Published Mar 16, 2010
Modified Mar 16, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
In a policing strategy arguably more futile than the war on drugs, the NYPD says it will attempt to crackdown on drinking and public intoxication at tomorrow's St. Patrick's Day Parade. Officers will be dispatched across the city with orders to confiscate booze and keep drunken revelers from marching in the parade—which this year features Police Commissioner Ray Kelly as Grand Marshal.
According to the Daily News, police won't just be assigned to monitor the parade, which starts at 11 a.m. at 44th Street and Fifth Avenue and ends at 86th Street. They'll also be dispatched on nearby streets, in Central Park, and at transit hubs like Penn Station, Grand Central Terminal, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, and Staten Island ferry terminals. MTA cops will be authorized to take away any booze they find on Long Island Rail Road trains and Metro-North trains, where drinking is usually allowed.
That said, there's also some good news for St. Patrick's Day revelers. The parade will still extend its full length, as the city won't implement its cost-cutting strategy of shortening routes by 25 percent until after the march. And for what it's worth, the NYPD sent out basically the same warning last year, and that didn't seem to keep people from getting wasted. Authorities in Hoboken have attempted a similar booze crackdown after complaints about revelers engaging in acts of public sex, public urination and public defecation.
Tagged
alcohol
booze
drunk
march
nypd
parade
police
police commissioner
public drunkeness
public intoxication
Ray Kelly
saint patrick's day
st. patrick's day
st. patrick's day parade
Ben Muessig
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
DSA to Mamdani: Fire NYPD commissioner if ICE doesn't leave NYC
The DSA's NYC chapter accused the NYPD of collaborating with ICE and demanded Mayor Mamdani hold Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch responsible.
By
Elizabeth Kim
,
Brigid Bergin
and
Ben Feuerherd
Published Oct 9, 2026 at 6:31 p.m. ET
Two people killed in Bronx vehicle crash
When officers arrived on the scene in Allerton Friday afternoon, they found three pedestrians who were unconscious with trauma to the head and body, according to the NYPD. Two individuals later died.
By
Kaya Laterman
News
Two people killed in Bronx vehicle crash
When officers arrived on the scene in Allerton Friday afternoon, they found three pedestrians who were unconscious with trauma to the head and body, according to the NYPD. Two individuals later died.
By
Kaya Laterman
NY will opt in Trump’s school choice program, Hochul says
By
Jon Campbell
Residents, lawmakers warned for months of potential for deadly ICE activity in Marble Hill
By
David Brand
Manhattan DA argues judge shouldn't dismiss state charges against Luigi Mangione
By
Samantha Max
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .