Michigan State University students partying near a burning couch in an alley off of Division Street on Oct. 31, 2020.
—Halloween and a Spartan victory led to an eventful Saturday, including 11 gathering violations, 24 fires and two arrests, according to East Lansing Police Department (ELPD) Deputy Chief Steve Gonzalez.
Michigan State secured a 27-24 victory over the University of Michigan, and hundreds took to the streets to celebrate in Spartan fashion: couch burning. This led to two dozen separate fires in the City of East Lansing.
"I've been calling them debris piles, just because there's not always just a couch there. A couch, a mattress, junk, that kind of stuff was set on fire," Gonzalez said.
Additionally, ELPD arrested two individuals for trying to set a couch on fire.
"Because the piece of furniture wasn't actually burning at that point in time, they were attempting to light it and had pieces of cardboard on it to try and get it to go," Gonzalez said. "We're seeking charges (on) preparation to burn."
The preparation to burn charge is a state charge and will be processed through the Ingham County Prosecutor's office, Gonzalez said.
Leading up to the combined holiday and game day, the Ingham County Health Department issued an order decreasing outdoor gathering limits from 25 to 10.
Gatherings still ensued and ELPD issued 11 fines of $500 each Saturday. ELPD fined seven gatherings on the Oct. 24 game day; however, at that time, outdoor gatherings were limited at 25 people.
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