By Jaxon Van Derbeken
The San Francisco Chronicle
SAN FRANCISCO — For the third straight year, San Francisco will have no officially sanctioned Halloween event in the Castro district. In fact, come Saturday night, there won’t be any officially sanctioned party anywhere in the city.
Though there won’t be a festival or party, city officials say they want everyone to come to San Francisco to have fun. Just don’t get drunk, urinate in public, or bring a knife or a gun.
Police Chief George Gascón, about to experience his first San Francisco Halloween on the job, stressed Thursday that the city has made a “tremendous commitment to ensure this is a safe holiday.”
He said police would have zero tolerance for “misbehavior, certainly for violent behavior.”
In 2006, the last time the city had a sanctioned Halloween party in the Castro, nine people were shot. In the two years before that, a total of five people were stabbed.
In 2007 and 2008, the city had no major outbreaks of violence. Gascón said at a news conference that he wants to build on that success, as does Supervisor Bevan Dufty.
“We expect this will be a great year,” Dufty said.
He said police will have a strong presence early in the evening in the Castro to demonstrate that no lawbreaking will be tolerated.
“It will be a business as usual, fun as usual day in the Castro,” Dufty said.
City residents on probation are being contacted and told to mind their restrictions and stay out of the Castro, authorities said.
The message to those on probation is “basically to stay home,” said Ernest Mendieta of the adult probation department.
Juvenile offenders are also being told to mind their curfews and stay away from the Castro, said Allen Nance, assistant chief of juvenile probation.
Gascón said the city is not discouraging holiday fun, just holiday lawbreaking.
“The message is: Come in, spend money, we need your tax dollars,” he said. “But if you are coming here to be drunk, or bring weapons,” the city will not be welcoming.
Copyright 2009 San Francisco Chronicle