Cookeville Police increasing drug enforcement as the Bonaroo Music Festival begins its weekend run in Manchester.
Cookeville Police Chief Scott Winfree said festival-goers have historically been caught transporting illegal drugs on Highway 111. Winfree said drugs are usually found when someone is pulled over a different offense, such as speeding.
“You may have someone either using any of the drugs, and it impairs their driving,” Winfree said. “And we definitely want to cut down on any chance of crashes due to impaired driving.”
Winfree said possession of a small amount of marijuana or some Schedule II drugs can result in a misdemenor simple possession charge. Winfree said larger amounts of drugs or certain packaging could lead to larger charges.
Winfree said drug use is common at large festivals like Bonaroo.
“You get a lot of people just wanting to have a really good time, and they believe in order to do that, they need to use some illegal drugs to enjoy it that much more,” Winfree said. “And that’s why you’ll see a lot of people, and by no means, not all people, but there’s quite a few people that come to those events and they’ll have illegal drugs with them.”
Even though drug enforcement is a primary focus this week, Winfree said officers are still enforcing speeding. Winfree said there have been several serious crashes on Highway 111 as well as construction zones throughout the years.
“We’re wanting to make sure people see us and get them to slow down,” Winfree said. “And that goes throughout the entire city. We’d just like to keep people safe, and that’s what we’re looking for.”
Winfree said enforcement over the last several days has targeted Highway 111 South with the Bonaroo traffic, but officers have the primary goal of keeping people safe and enforcing the law.
The Bonaroo Music Festival in Manchester runs through Sunday.
