Spring breakers' Ocean Drive party gets wild in South Beach

Police officers to spring breakers: Come on vacation, don't leave on probation

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MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – A video shows a man punching a woman and knocking her down to the floor on Ocean Drive in South Beach. Another video shows a man driving on the MacArthur Causeway with an open bottle of alcohol and reaching out to a passenger in another car to pour some in her cup. 

The college crowd is in town until April 2. The MacArthur and Julia Tuttle causeways only have two lanes open each, so that the license plate readers can register every car coming into South Beach and catch those who have pending arrest warrants.  

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Despite the hundreds of officers' on every block of Ocean Drive -- which remains closed to drivers from Fifth to 12th streets until 3 a.m. Monday ---  and the causeways, there are outlaws leaving evidence behind on social media. 

Miami Beach Police Department Officer Ernesto Rodriguez, a spokesman for the department, shared one of the videos on Twitter Friday saying, "This is the exact type of reckless and dangerous behavior that if we witness you will be arrested for." 

Becoming a spring break destination comes at a price. The department plans to spend about $700,000 in overtime for police officers. The city spent about $30,000 in marketing to warn tourists that what happens in South Beach, doesn't stay in South Beach. It can end up in Miami-Dade County court. 

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"Come on vacation, don't leave on probation," one sign says. 

The advertisement also reminds tourists that drinking outside of hotels, bars, restaurants and nightclubs, smoking marijuana, riding on top of vehicles and loud music are prohibited in South Beach. 

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Rodriguez and Chief Dan Oates expect to be working long hours for the next two weeks.

For more information about the traffic changes, visit mbspringbreak.com or send a text message to MBtraffic to 888777.

Videos (Warning: Graphic content, violence and profanity)

 


About the Authors
Andrea Torres headshot

The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.

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