It appears the University may have learned its lesson in crowd control in the three months that followed the violence which tarnished the Penn Relays this year. And the results showed in an abnormally tranquil Greek Picnic July 8 and 9. The Greek Picnic, an annual gathering of black fraternities and sororities in Philadelphia, has brought gunfire and violence to the University City area in past years. In contrast to University Police's scanty preparation for the Penn Relays, University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich spent months preparing for the Greek Picnic. This year's Picnic also posed particular challenges. In addition to the thousands of picnickers and camp followers who usually come to the University area to party after the picnic, there was a step show at the Civic Center which promised to bring a large percentage of the 200,000 partyers to campus. But Kuprevich met with Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Neal, and planned to more than double the University Police ranks until 3 a.m. on both nights of the Picnic. Philadelphia Police also made plans to close streets that became congested, to avoid the attacks against motorists that occurred during the Penn Relays, and also to protect pedestrians from the traffic, 18th District Police Lt. Mike Weaver said. In the end, there were five auto accidents, two disorderly conducts, and one weapon confiscation -- all fairly distant from campus -- during the weekend, Weaver said. This was a stark contrast to the beatings and assaults which occurred during the Penn Relays, or even what occurred on South Street during the Greek Picnic. On the second day of the Picnic, about 70,000 people crowded onto South Street, following the step show at the Civic Center, South Street Police Detail Commander Lt. Robert McCarthy said. After 11:30 p.m. some people in the crowd started yelling "gun" and there were at least seven stampedes. In the process at least 12 stores had their windows broken and bottles were thrown at police, McCarthy said. Police officials ordered South Street closed at 12:30 a.m. and brought in police in riot gear to clear the crowd. An officer, who asked that he not be identified, said that in spite of the 900 police officers assigned to control the crowd, there came a point when the law could not be enforced, and the streets could not be cleared until 5 a.m. It was the fear that something like this could occur around campus that prompted University Police to put out a security advisory on PennInfo to make everyone in the University community aware of possible hazards associated with the event. And Kuprevich said he was committed to insuring that the violence of the Penn Relays did not repeat itself. "We have worked extensively with the 18th, 16th, 19th and city-wide [police] units in addition to other city offices; security entities in the local community; and with the sponsors of the Picnic and some of our local student Greek organizations," Kuprevich said. "There [was] a command post set up for coordination of communications and for handling all incidents in our area." And the planning paid off. "There were no major or significant incidents related to the Greek Picnic participants in the West Philadelphia area," Kuprevich said. "We had crowds at 40th and Chestnut streets, but our strategies of working with the students and having sufficient officers on site beforehand worked very well. "We never lost control of the street, nor were there any major crowd issues," he added. Kuprevich said that the police operations used this year during the Greek Picnic would serve as a model for the Penn Relays next year.
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