Officers plan high visibility for Bonnaroo
With close to 100,000 people expected to converge on the Bonnaroo festival in neighboring Coffee County this weekend, authorities in Warren County say they will be maintaining high visibility to make sure visitors passing through observe the law.
“A lot of the directions to the concert lead people right through Warren County as a back way in, so they’ll be several thousand passing through on the way to the concert,” said Sheriff Jackie Matheny. “Now, we don’t profile and we aren’t going to pick on anybody in particular, but at the same time we want to make sure there’s no problems. It’s no secret a lot of drugs came through here last time. And, with this many people coming through here, it’s just a good idea to pick things up a little bit.”
Matheny said his men will be “keeping a little more visible” over the Bonnaroo weekend, with some running radar to discourage speeders. The presence, Matheny believes, may also serve to keep down any other problems.
“We really haven’t had any problems much in the past, aside from one break-in last year near the county line that we suspect was committed by someone from out of town,” Matheny said. “By stepping up our presence, maybe that will stop something like that this year.”
Matheny said the enforcement will be inside the Warren County line, barring an emergency request for assistance from Coffee County.
Numerous highway patrol officers and other law enforcement agents will be working the areas around the Bonnaroo festival in Coffee County.