VALPARAISO | If Police Chief Michael Brickner had his druthers, he'd rather see the city ban the use of fireworks on all but the 13-day minimum mandated by state law.
"I don't see any purpose in lighting fireworks the rest of the year," Brickner told the city's Fireworks Committee on Wednesday.
State law prohibits communities from outlawing the use of consumer fireworks from June 29 to July 9 and on New Year's Eve until 1 a.m. New Year's Day. It is left to communities to decide what to do with the other days of the year, and, for now, Valparaiso has no ordinance concerning their use.
Brickner said prohibiting them the rest of the year would make it easier for police to enforce because they don't have to actually witness someone setting off the fireworks or determine if the situation is a violation of the nuisance ordinance. If fireworks debris is found to indicate something was ignited illegally, the person can be cited.
The number of complaints about fireworks dropped dramatically during the past two years when the state law was changed to allow year-round use of most fireworks. About 100 complaints a year were received from 2003 through 2005. Police reported only 49 complaints in 2006, the first year of the new law, and 41 in 2007.
Brickner said that could be because people know the state law was changed and they can't complain or they call police and the dispatchers tell them fireworks are legal and the police can't do anything.
Capt. Mike DeHaven said police rely on the nuisance ordinance to cite people for fireworks and do that only when someone causes a problem for an extended period. The real issue is the noise, but the city's noise ordinance has no standards that can be enforced.
DeHaven said a local fireworks ordinance would be helpful for police as long as it allows for some police discretion in deciding whether to ticket someone.
The committee's lawyer, Patrick Lyp, will draft an ordinance for discussion at next Wednesday's meeting modeled after Griffith's fireworks law, which several committee members said they liked.
The committee also wants to send out information to residents in the future informing them of the fireworks regulations. The committee meets at 4 p.m. each Wednesday, except March 12, through April or until it comes up with a recommendation for the council.
