MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Security changes are coming to Beale Street after this weekend’s triple shooting outside of a club, officials say.
If you hit Beale this weekend, wanding with hand-held metal detectors will be happening from 9 p.m. until 3 a.m.
At the moment, those detectors are used beginning at 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights, and ending when the crowd reaches a certain level.
Young said wanding was in use earlier in the night Saturday, but had ended before the shooting happened at 2:15 a.m. Sunday.
They will also collect a $5 security fee starting at 9 p.m., but are still determining how late they will be collecting the fee.
Downtown Memphis official: Beale Street to extend late-night security, add fee (wreg.com)
My understanding is that the fee used to happen but was taken down. I get the feeling these new “enhanced security measures” are more about income than security. The missus and I went to Beale street 30 years ago and had a swell time which ended in BB King’s, good food, great music and I almost got a tattoo (In my defense, bourbon was involved but the noise of the machines and the “needlework” sobered me up). It sounds now like it is more an approximation the chaos of Miami Beach than Blues Land.
I still want to go to downtown Nashville and see what kind of zoo it has become since the last time I was there.
Now hold on a second.
The Beale Street Entertainment District (the entity that technically owns Beale Street–it’s not owned by the city as one would think) <a href="https://www.actionnews5.com/story/10551474/beale-street-to-ban-guns-use-metal-detectors/"very publicly implemented metal detectors as a safety measure back in 2009.
Was there an uptick in violence? A sudden rash of robberies?
No. It was because Tennessee reformed its’ firearms laws to allow people with permits to eat in restaurants that also happened to serve alcohol.
I’m very curious why they stopped doing that since the law that caused them do this in the first place hasn’t been repealed.
Where’s that edit button when you really need it
You are correct about the fee implemented some years ago. I wasn’t aware it was walked back, but by all accounts it mostly had its intended effect.
Another “Gun Free Zone” where people get shot by criminals?
How often does that happen? /sarc