Downey doubles fines for fireworks offenses
Downey firefighters extinguish a roof fire caused by an illegal firework in 2020.
DOWNEY — A decision to double the fines for firework violations caused some dissension amid the city council at their meeting on Tuesday.
Fines for the possession and discharge will increase to $4,000 for a first offense, $5,000 for a second offense, and $6,000 for a third offense and beyond.
There have been 101 total fireworks-related citations issued since 2022, per Downey Police records. Prior to Tuesday’s decision, the fines had last been adjusted in 2013.
Downey allows for the sale of “safe and sane fireworks,” which do not shoot into the air or explode, by a handful of the city’s non-profit organizations, churches, and service clubs in the days leading up to the Independence Day holiday each year. Their discharge, however, is only permitted from 3 pm to 10 pm on July 4.
The city has a zero-tolerance policy for illegal fireworks.
Most of the city council, especially Councilwoman Claudia Frometa, were of the opinion that the fines needed “to hurt,” especially when it came to collection.
“The whole point of this is to deter people from doing this; increasing the fines, and doing all this public education,” said Frometa. “True, there are payment plans available, but if it doesn’t hurt people’s pocket book, then this item and this conversation is a moot point.”
Fines are collected in various different ways, including through payment plans and tax intercepts. In 2023, $114,700 in fines were assessed, with $42,512 (37%) having been collected so far, one citation voided, and another dismissed.
Collection numbers are significantly lower for this year ($100,000 assessed, $16,373 collected), however that is mainly due to the still relatively close proximity of the holiday.
Mayor Mario Trujillo disagreed with his colleagues, however, calling the increases “draconian.”
“$5,000 for the discharge of fireworks is more than I used to get for criminals in misdemeanors,” said Trujillo.
The council voted 4-1, with Trujillo in opposition.
The Council also voted 3-2 to adjust the fines for the discharge of safe and sane fireworks outside of the permitted timeframe and locations to $500, $1,000, and $2,000, splitting the council even more than the first.
It was Mayor Pro Tem Hector Sosa who joined Trujillo amongst the nay votes, feeling that increasing the fines for safe and sane misuse was unneeded since such instances were rare.
City Prosecutor James Eckert had said that safe and sane violations amounted to “less than ten outside of the Fourth of July season.”
“I’m not sure that we need to do anything there,” said Sosa. “The rarity of the calls, I don’t see any danger there.”
Councilwoman Dorothy Pemberton said that the city was “trying to send a message.
“We’re trying to send a message that there’s a time and a place to do it, and which fireworks to use. There’s a consequence,” said Pemberton. “This [current fine of] $250 is nothing compared to the price of things nowadays.
“The message to get to them to stop it is going to be a fine; it’s going to be something that will hit them financially.”