Nurse among those charged after 100-guest house party
Halloween gathering disregarded Tennessee county’s limit of 25
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Nashville police are charging three women, including a registered nurse, after they hosted a large house party on Halloween, violating health orders.
The roommates, all 23, were issued misdemeanor citations in connection with an Oct. 31 football watch party at their east Nashville home.
One of the roommates is a registered nurse at TriStar Skyline Medical Center in Nashville, authorities said.
Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said the women were served with court summonses Monday and are slated to appear on the charges Dec. 16.
According to an arrest affidavit, officers responding to a complaint about a loud party heard music blaring and saw several people in the yard. In all, police said they found more than 100 people inside and outside the home.
When officers spoke to the roommates outside, they told police they had organized a watch party at their home for a football game, the affidavit says. The officers told the women that at that time, no more than 25 people were permitted to gather in Davidson County unless the gathering was approved by the city.
The women then went inside and told everyone to leave, police reported.
Hugh Atkins, Nashville Metro Public Health’s environmental health services director, confirmed that the department did not receive an event application for the gathering.
It was not immediately known whether the hospital had taken any disciplinary action against the nurse, and she did not return an immediate request for comment.
“Properly following pandemic regulations is extremely important to help reduce the spread of COVID-19,” Anna-Lee Cockrill, a spokeswoman for TriStar, said regarding the party. “We are looking into this further.”
Monday’s statewide COVID-19 numbers marked a record high increase in cases in Tennessee. The Tennessee Department of Health announced an increase of 7,975 cases and 48 deaths over the previous 24 hours. So far, the virus had caused 4,602 deaths statewide.
Police have madeover 50 arrests, issue over 315 citations for health orders
Police data shows that at least 50 people have been arrested and more than 315 have been cited under local emergency health orders that went into effect earlier this year.
Just this weekend, Nashville police issued nine citations and made one arrest after people refused to wear face masks in public, a mandated action in Davidson County.
As of late November, at least dozen people had been arrested on Class A misdemeanor charges after police said they held large house parties and events. Some of them entertained as many as 600 people at a time, police reported. If convicted, they face up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine.