Over 200 arrests made at Galveston 'Go Topless' Jeep event

At least 219 arrests were made at the annual Go Topless Jeep Weekend on the Bolivar Peninsula, as of 6 a.m. Sunday. Most of the arrests were misdemeanors for public intoxication, disorderly conduct and some DWI arrests, according to authorities. A breakdown of the arrests was not immediately available. Last year numbers were lower — about upward of 100 arrests — when COVID-19 cases were on the rise.

This weekend tops 2019 numbers, as well. From Thursday to Sunday, 125 people on the Bolivar Peninsula were arrested and booked into the county jail that year, according to a previous Houston Chronicle report. After the event in 2019, more than 11,000 people signed a petition calling for the end of the event. Sheriff of Galveston County Henry Trochesset said in general, the beaches are starting to get busier, and in turn they’ve been starting to get more arrests during big weekend events. “We are seeing pre Hurricane Ike numbers on the beaches,” Trochesset said. “We used to have consistent numbers like this for heavy weekends like the 4th of July and Memorial Day.”