Country Jam 2021 Stats: Alcohol, Fights, Sexual Assault

Colorado's biggest country music festival has come and gone in western Colorado and as usual, it was a busy weekend for law enforcement.

Country Jam Fans Were Ready to Party

Festival fans were definitely ready to party this year after missing out on Country Jam in 2020 because of the pandemic. What has traditionally been a 4-day musical event was scaled down to three days this year, but, as usual, law enforcement and medics were as busy as ever at the Jam Ranch in Mack.

Considering the nature of the event and the amount of drinking that happens, it's never surprising to hear about the involvement of law enforcement. However, when you consider the thousands of people in attendance, it's a relatively low number of problems. It's a well-documented fact that the majority of Country Jam attendees come from outside of Mesa County.

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Alcohol-Related Offenses Dominate the Docket

According to the Mesa County Sheriff's Office, a total of 60 arrests for alcohol-related offenses during this year's Country Jam.

• At the festival, law enforcement made 18 arrests for minor in possession/alcohol offenses along with 9 for a fake ID.
• In the campground, there were 31 arrests for minor in possession/alcohol offenses.
• In the parking lot, 10 arrests were made for minor in possession/alcohol offenses

The Colorado State Patrol was also on-site making four DUI arrests and responded to one DUI-pedestrian crash inside the concert, which resulted in minor injuries.  CSP also responded to two property damage crashes.

Medical Issues At the Jam

Meanwhile, there were plenty of medical issues during the festival, though this year's daytime temperatures were relatively mild compared to most years. Lower Valley Fire Protection District treated 205 individuals on-site with 17 being transported to local hospitals. There was a variety of medical-related incidents including traumatic injuries, simple wound care, heat-related/dehydration, alcohol overdose, allergic reactions, cardiac, respiratory, diabetic, and seizure. There was also a report of a carbon monoxide incident.

Mesa County Sheriff's Office also reported arrests for assault and a restraining order violation, and is investigating the report of a sexual assault. There were also a number of reports of intoxicated subjects, fights, and selling unauthorized goods.