Sheriff Jack Williams wasn’t expecting to break up an underage party Friday amid a pandemic. HERALD FILE PHOTO

You can’t fix stupid, but you can cite it

Party was in full swing when deputies arrived

By ANDREW McGINN

a.mcginn@beeherald.com

They used to be called “underage beer parties.”

But when Greene County Sheriff Jack Williams and deputies walked up late Friday on a rented farmstead northwest of Paton, they found what could more accurately be described as an “underage COVID-19 party.”

There, Williams said, they found around 60 people, many of them underage, partying inside a two-car garage at 236 Q Ave.

Deputies, who were joined by the Gowrie Police Department, had no protective masks on them as they descended into the crowd.

“We didn’t expect to walk up on an underage beer party,” Williams said on Monday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now recommending cloth face coverings in public settings where social distancing measures are difficult to maintain, and especially in areas of significant community-based transmission.

A large number of individuals who lack symptoms of COVID-19 can transmit the novel coronavirus to others, the CDC says.

The only Greene County resident in attendance, according to Williams, was the host, 23-year-old Riley Rittgers, who was cited for providing alcohol to minors.

Deputies were responding to an anonymous call about 11:26 p.m. Friday when the party was discovered at the rural home about two miles from Webster County.

When deputies informed the revelers of Gov. Kim Reynolds’ ban on all gatherings of more than 10 people in hopes of mitigating the spread of the novel coronavirus in Iowa, “They’d never even heard of it,” Williams said.

Nearly three dozen people between the ages of 18 and 20 were cited for possession of alcohol underage. Seven under the age of 18 were taken to the Greene County Law Enforcement Center, where they were charged with possession of alcohol underage, then released to parents.

Levi Hollingshead, 18, of Boone, was arrested on a charge of possession of alcohol underage.

All of them had to call for rides from the residence, Williams said.

There were also around 10 people of age in attendance, he said.

Violating the governor’s ban on gatherings is a simple misdemeanor, Williams said, and he was awaiting guidance from the Iowa Attorney General’s Office before tacking on more charges.

Reynolds on Monday signed a new proclamation continuing the March 17 state public health emergency declaration until 11:59 p.m. April 30, and coincidentally called on law enforcement to assist in the enforcement of mitigation efforts.

Shortly after the governor’s press conference Monday morning, Greene County Public Health announced the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Greene County: an individual between the ages of 41 and 60 who is self-isolating at home.

In closing city-owned facilities in Jefferson on Friday with his own emergency proclamation — a move that closed park playground equipment, shelter houses and bathrooms — Mayor Matt Gordon warned that the proclamation is enforceable by the Jefferson Police Department.

The Greene County Community School District followed Monday by announcing its playgrounds are also closed to the public.

Reynolds announced additional closures Monday, including playgrounds and both public and private campgrounds. Unsolicited door-to-door sales are also now prohibited.

However, Friday’s party northwest of Paton makes clear that not everyone has been following Reynolds’ press conferences.

“For us, it’s business as usual,” Williams said. “Unfortunately, we don’t have the ability to separate ourselves from the public.”

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