Redneck Rave leads to multiple drug arrests, less violence

Multiple people were arrested on drug-related offenses, including a man who is charged with trafficking marijuana, at last weekend’s Redneck Rave in Edmonson County,

According to the Edmonson County Sheriff’s Office, a deputy was conducting a traffic stop on Tyler Smith, 29, of Homer, Mich., after the deputy noticed Smith driving without a license plate light. Deputies noticed Smith was visibly shaking from nervousness and picked up a strong odor of marijuana from the vehicle.

Smith admitted to regularly smoking marijuana in his vehicle, according to an arrest citation.

Deputies executed a probable cause search on Smith’s vehicle and found several boxes of THC edibles and two Ziploc bags of marijuana, the arrest citation said. Smith said all the items were legal and he planned on selling them at the Redneck Rave.

Deputies contacted the commonwealth’s attorney after the discovery and were instructed to seize all edibles in unmarked packages and anything labeled “THC” for further testing, according to the arrest citation. Sheriff Shane Doyle also instructed the deputy to seize Smith’s cash.

Doyle said the drug bust was the largest bust in the last 20 years. He said the department hasn’t determined an exact weight for the drugs due to the busy weekend.

The drugs will be destroyed after Smith’s case is resolved.

Lower attendance, other factors prevent Redneck Rave chaos

Seventeen citations were given during last week’s four-day Redneck Rave at Blue Holler OffRoad Park in Edmonson County, featuring “mud, music and mayhem,” according to the sheriff’s office. Nine people were arrested.

Those numbers are a dramatic improvement compared to June’s Redneck Rave. In June, 48 were charged and 14 were arrested, and the charges ranged from assault and strangulation to drug and alcohol possession.

Most of the charges and citations from last weekend’s five-day party stemmed from traffic violations or drug possession. Doyle said no violent crimes were committed and the event was better managed.

“I’m very pleased with the improvement. 100 percent it was an improvement,” Doyle said.

There was only one call for an ambulance during the entire event, according to Doyle. A man appeared to be having seizures, but Doyle believes the man was very intoxicated.

Doyle said when the man woke up, he refused medical transport.

During last June’s Redneck Rave, medical calls were frequent. One man was impaled in the abdomen with a log.

Doyle believes multiple factors contributed to October’s event being better managed. His department also was more prepared after the previous experience.

“We believe that a lower attendance at the event, possible measures taken by the event coordinators, as well as the precedence set from law enforcement presence during the June event contributed to a safer weekend for everyone,” Doyle said. “We encourage tourism into our beautiful community, but as I’ve stated before, we expect everyone to be respectful of the county and the law when you get here. I want to also commend my staff for their hard work and thank our partners at the Kentucky State Police for their additional presence in the area over the weekend.”