Disney ousting "wannabe gangbusters" from Downtown

[joelkfla]

From today's Sentinel:

Teens face crackdown at Downtown Disney
Henry Pierson Curtis and Scott Powers | Sentinel Staff Writers
June 22, 2007

Walt Disney World is stepping up efforts to roust unwanted teens and young adults from its Downtown Disney complex.

The company's security guards and off-duty Orange County deputy sheriffs boosted their presence last weekend at the popular shopping and entertainment area, issuing as many trespass warnings in two days as they had the previous 51/2 months.

Fifty teens and young adults were banned from Disney property forever. If they return, they can be arrested.

Those barred included a 15-year-old boy from Osceola County who was arrested with marijuana and a loaded .380-caliber pistol, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Office.

The operation, which adds 11 off-duty deputy sheriffs to the normal four-member team at Downtown Disney for four weekends, started a week after two Connecticut tourists reported they were abducted from the parking lot and later robbed.

Disney and sheriff's officials said the crackdown stemmed from broader concerns, not one incident.

"A ganglike presence was unfortunately identified at Downtown Disney. And that is not going to be tolerated," Disney World spokeswoman Jacquee Polak said Thursday. "So additional deputies were proactively assigned to patrol the area and that's going to go on as long as is needed."

Sheriff's Capt. Ted Brown, who supervises patrols at Disney, said the heightened enforcement had been planned weeks ago in response to increasing numbers of problem teens Disney and deputies had noticed starting late last year.

"A lot of them were described as 'wannabe gangbangers.' " he said. "And some of them were flat-out harassing and bothering other guests."

Under the current push, Disney security officers survey the crowds and question guests they suspect of being a problem. Deputies are asked to issue warnings if the guests refuse to answer, argue and refuse to leave, according to the Sheriff's Office.

Targeting minorities?

Out of the 50 warnings issued last weekend, the Sheriff's Office was able to find only 40 of the reports. Warnings were issued to 20 young Hispanic males, 19 young black males and one young black female.

None came from Orange County, the location of Downtown Disney. Eleven were from Osceola County, 11 from Lake County, 11 from Polk County, five from Georgia and one each from Arizona, Texas and an unreported location.

One of the teens told never to come back asked why no whites were among those warned about trespassing.

"A whole bunch of white boys walked by yelling and stuff, and they didn't do nothing to them," said Michael Washington, 16, of Polk City.

Washington said that he, his brother and three cousins drove to Downtown Disney on Friday night to go to the movies. They met two young black men and a woman in the parking lot who said "they were arresting all black folks."

He said Disney security officers followed them after they visited a store. One of his cousins cursed the guards after being stopped, Washington said.

Asked whether he thought race played a role in why they were ejected, the teen said, "I don't know. I don't know, sir. They came straight at the black crowd."

Polak would not comment on the racial breakdown of those teens and young men who were rousted. She also would not comment on what guidelines Disney security follows in deciding who should get a trespass warning.

"Our priority, and that of law enforcement, is to maintain a safe experience," Polak said.

A review of trespass warnings issued last year at Disney showed more diversity. Out of 296 total trespass warnings at Downtown Disney in 2006, 29 went to blacks and 42 went to Hispanics, according to sheriff's records.

The rest -- 225 -- went to whites, Asians and others.

'Like it was the mall'

Teens loitering in the Downtown Disney area first became a problem in early 2005 after Disney stopped charging an entry fee to the Pleasure Island nightclub complex, Brown said.

Once the turnstiles were removed, teens began congregating at two outdoor plazas between the nightclubs. Large screens that displayed rap, hip-hop and other music videos provided free entertainment.

"It quickly became an area for these kids to go, and for whatever reasons undesirable elements started congregating there, too," Brown said.

In January 2006, Disney removed the projection screens and outdoor music to "get rid of the street-party atmosphere," he said.

An additional concern involved even younger guests.

"And there was an even younger group of kids who were getting dropped off by their parents like it was the mall or someplace to hang out," Brown said. "You know, Disney does not want to be a baby-sitting service."

No one has been arrested in the June 10 abduction and robbery reported by Justin Stetzer and Jessica DellaCamera of North Branford, Conn. But even before the first beefed-up detail began, sheriff's detectives were raising doubts about parts of their story.

Inconsistencies included their claim to have been abducted at gunpoint in a lighted parking lot just six rows from an observation tower staffed by a Disney security guard, according to a report released this week.

"Both victims then became even more irate and began cussing and stating that they never would cooperate any more," a detective wrote about asking Stetzer and DellaCamera to take a lie-detector test.

The Sheriff's Office has stopped pursuing the case.

[joelkfla]

Oops - that thread title should say "gangbangers", not "gang:busters".

[Dsnygirl]

My DH and I were only there briefly during our last stay, and didn't notice any of this - but I'm glad that Disney has cracked down on this if it was going on. Certainly, no one visiting Disney wants to put up with this kind of behavior, or have to worry about being harassed or robbed. And maybe they should put those turnstiles back up at PL - that would probably solve quite a few of the problems! If parents had to shell our $$ to drop their kids off, I bet they'd stop...

[ibrowse17]

I wish them luck in their efforts to keep the trouble makers away from our Happy Place

[Stu29573]

I'm usually one who complains about how high Disney costs have become, but I agree that the turnstiles need to go back up.....

[cgriff]

Hmmm, so that abduction/robbery from a few weeks ago may have been a hoax? I wonder if that will get as wide media coverage as the original story did?

[Tinkermom]

I'm usually one who complains about how high Disney costs have become, but I agree that the turnstiles need to go back up.....

I agree. I have no problem paying a bit more in order to have the experience that I expect from Disney. DH and I have only been to Pleasure Island once, that was when the turnstiles were still there. We are not people who ever go to clubs just because it is not our thing (and we are now too old) However, we wanted to try Pleasure Island since it seemed like a fun and safe place. We both really enjoyed "club hopping" Disney-style. We felt safe and it was lots of fun.

We were at Downtown Disney in March and I also did not see any of the problems listed in the report. I sure hope they can find a way to continue keep the area as safe as possible.

[Ian]

Based on what I've seen lately at PI, not only do I think they should bring back the turnstiles, but I think they should double the admission price.

The class of people I saw there are NOT the kind of people I want to be around on my Disney vacation.

Or ever!

[Christine]

I am very glad to hear this!

I wouldn't mind if they put turnstiles up at DTD period, Marketplace and all. Mainly because they could establish when it has reached capacity. The Market Place is not that big and has been WAY too crowded lately.

Also, with this kind of undesirable crowd hanging around, there should at the very least be the same bag search that there is in the parks. It may not be the most productive search (some of the time they barely eye-ball your bags), but it would still be a deterrant.

Just my opinion...

[GrumpyFan]

Glad to hear they're dong something about the problems. We haven't been to PI in a few years, but we do go to DTD every trip, and it's very important to feel safe while visiting there. Hopefully, their efforts will drive the bad crowd away.

[DizneyRox]

I never understood why they removed the turnstyles. PI has never been my cup of tea, but once I heard about the changes in admission policy I knew I would not be back.

I can't remember the last time I was even at the West Side. Now that there really isn't any localized merchandise anymore, DTD has dropped to the very bottom of the list of things to do.

[JPL]

On my last Visit to PI in 2004 this problem was really bad lots of kids and underage drinking going on that I saw. Very little noticeable security. It seemed to have the feel of a gang hangout back then. I didn't even see the underage teens questioned about having drinks in their hands when the security passed by. I have heard from a few local friends that it has gotten progressively worse over the years so I basically haven't been back since. I wonder what took Disney so long to crack down. I really wish at times they would be more proactive rather than wait for a incident to occur.

[angedeaile]

I am glad Disney is doing something about it. I just hope they aren't going purely based on race. I have seen drug users/dealers and gang members of all races. Not only that, but Disney doesn't need to get a bad rap trying to protect guests by going about it all wrong. I always get so sad when I hear the mouse is being sued

All of that aside, perhaps they will give further thought into having security checkpoints at all enterances like other Resort property. Might help keep the riff raff out...

[Jasper]

I wish them luck in getting and keeping these problems under control. I especially wish them luck in avoiding the charges of racial bias. Gangs are, of course, normally made up of individuals of the same ethnic, social, financial, etc. backgrounds. Thus if you happen to only have one gang working a particular area and that gang happens to be minority, it is normal that you will arrest more minorities. But facts like that doesn't stop others from playing the race card and stirring up the community!

[mttafire]

Based on what I've seen lately at PI, not only do I think they should bring back the turnstiles, but I think they should double the admission price.

The class of people I saw there are NOT the kind of people I want to be around on my Disney vacation.

Or ever!

Ian, I agree with that 100%. If the prices go up..so does the class of patrons. As a whole i think DTD is VERY safe and nice...BUT, P.I. especially on the weekends brings out VERY "seedy" folks. It aint about race.White, Black or anything in between...Bad people is bad people. Raise the prices alot and you'll see and end to the riff raff. I applaud Disney for hopefully ending this situation.

[playdead88]

on our visit back in april of this year i noticed a difference in the crowds - they were teens without parents, not buying anything, just hanging out....what you would see at any mall in america. i love downtown disney and would certainly be willing to pay a price to get in if it meant a nicer visit than what you would expect at your neighborhood mall. hopefully it won't come to that.

[TheRustyScupper]

1) Glorioski!

2) I have written SEVERAL posts about the teens since the admission change.
3) My emails to WDW "brass" never got a response.
4) Mrs Rusty said the only place in WDW she felt unsafe was at PI.
5) We said we WOULD NOT go back until it was changed.
6) Recent crimes, plus the build-up of teens has borne this out.

7) It is so nice to see WDW taking action.
8) Thanks! (finally)

[snifflesmcg]

My DH and I were only there briefly during our last stay, and didn't notice any of this - but I'm glad that Disney has cracked down on this if it was going on. Certainly, no one visiting Disney wants to put up with this kind of behavior, or have to worry about being harassed or robbed. And maybe they should put those turnstiles back up at PL - that would probably solve quite a few of the problems! If parents had to shell our $$ to drop their kids off, I bet they'd stop...

The first time I was ever to PI was 2001 and it was fantasic! BEST part of my trip by far! By the time 2005 rolled around the atmosphere had changed. I saw many kids really young with absolutely no supervision. Not only do I think the turnstiles should be put up, with all the smoking, drinking and colorful language, it should be 18 to enter, 21 to drink.

[Crow]

i havent been into any of the clubs since the change. i liked the idea of a small area for adults like that. hopefully it will b less of a mall.
i worked in stores in malls for yrs and saw problems.......

[WDWfanatic742]

Honestly, not all teens are like this. A couple friends and I (who are 16 and 17) went up to WDW for a couple days which included a visit to DTD and we were very civilized and all the kids that we saw were civilized. It's always the few bad apples that ruin it for everyone else. Only saying that not all teens are carrying drug's and weapons on them all the time.