In this module, Lt. Jay Lawson from the Burlington Police Department shares information about the laws and city ordinances, specifically ones around alcohol, noise and parties.

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University
of Vermont
Since 1791

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Off Campus
Living Workshop
u v m . e d u / o s c r

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CHAPTER 5
B u r l i n g t o n P o l i c e D e p a r t m e n t : C i t y
O r d i n a n c e s & C o m m u n i t y
TheBurlingtonPolice Department wants to makesureyou
understand city ordinancesso that youcan be a good neighbor.
Amongall city ordinancesthe top reasons that students interact
with BPD are:
• Noise
• Alcohol
• Parties

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ALCOHOL
VIOLATIONS
Alcohol isregulatedbyfederal,stateandlocal laws/ordinances.Some important
thingstoremember:
• Furnishingalcoholtoaminor(evenone dayshyofbeing21)isaserious
violationand canleadtocourtfees,a felonyrecordaswellascivil liabilityif
thepersonyoufurnishedalcoholtogetsinjuredorinjuressomeoneor
destroystheirproperty.
• Youare onlyallowedtoconsumealcohol,ifyouareoflegalage,onprivate
property.Walkingintothestreet,ontothesidewalkortoaneighborshouse
while youaredrinkingisconsidereda violationoftheopencontainer
ordinance.

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NOISE
VIOLATIONS
Thereare two types of noise violations::
• Generalnoise, which is anynoise that is deemed unreasonable.
Althoughthe city has quiet hours from 10PMto 7AM - this
ticketcanbe issued at anytime.
• Commonreasons whythese tickets are issued include:
• Revving anengine
• Playingmusic loudly
• Screamingthat is disturbing neighbors

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• Party/Social, which can be issued if there is noise from a residence with
one morethan the number ofpeople on the lease. Having asingle
friend over qualifies.
• These tickets increase in severity:
• 1st offense: $300/person on the lease. 4 roommates on the lease
means ticket would be $1,200.
• 2nd offense: $400/person on the lease.
• 3rd offense: $500 plus a CRIMIINAL citation (which can affect
employment after college.
NOISE
VIOLATIONS

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OUT OF
CONTROL
PARTY
Out of control parties arean issue for many reasons:
• As the host you may be liablefor damageyour ”guests” cause
• As host, you mayexperience thefts during and burglaries after the party is over as
strangers take stock of what they can steal
• Cause a disturbance to your neighbors and give you a bad reputation in your
neighborhood
• And of course, youwill not have a good time!
The BPD advises youto manageyour household proactively by not letting strangers in. If
you find yourself at a loss you can alwayscall BPD to ask them to help you empty your
home of unwanted guests.

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Thank You!
BPDhopesyouhave a funtime living in the city’sresidential
neighborhoods.