WHY THE FIREWORKS WERE CANCELED. PART 1

Mount Holly Police Department And PBA Issue Stark Warnings

SUMMARY: The Facebook rumor mill was churning theories about the potential cancelation of fireworks this year. But the cancellation has now been announced on the township webpage. See here And The Reporter dug deep into this story to lay out facts surrounding it. Some of that will be presented in a follow up article, but Part 1 of this story keeps the focus on the primary reason for the cancelation.

A series of blunt public safety pronouncements was issued in a letter issued from the Police Benevolent Association [PBA] and the Mount Holly Chief of Police to the Township Manager. This detailed letter speaks for itself and is published here in full. The letter is undated but was attached to a transmittal email dated May 6th, 2026 from Chief of Police Cliff Spencer.

Readers should note that council member Astor’s first notification of this letter was when The Reporter asked for comment yesterday. She was not aware of the letter.

“Kim and I did not receive a copy of this letter and were unaware of the chief’s safety concerns. It’s very disappointing that the concerns were not brought to our attention, because being notified in a timely way that our police had these issues would have prompted us to have a discussion of potential options for the July 4th celebration.” Tara Astor, Council Member

The response of the Township Manager to the Chief of Police is also reprinted.

The Reporter has taken the liberty of extracting the following parts of the letter below which we believe are key to understand the position of the Police Department.

Italics and CAPS were not from the original.

“…the current fireworks event, by its nature, attendance pattern, crowd behavior, location, and recent history, HAS OUTGROWN THE TOWNSHIP’S ABILITY TO MANAGE IT SAFELY and responsibly under the present format.”

“…the resources necessary to safely manage this event in its current form would FAR EXCEED what has historically been provided.”

“…For that reason, the union is not comfortable representing that this event can be made sufficiently safe SIMPLY BY INCREASING POLICE PRESENCE, ADDING EQUIPMENT or repeating prior operational plans. While additional resources may reduce some risk, they do not address the core concern: the current event model continues to generate conditions that are unsafe, unpredictable, and increasingly difficult to control.”

Original Letter Follows

Dear Mount Holly Township Officials,

On behalf of Burlington County PBA Local #37, and in support of the Mount Holly Police Department Police Officers Association and the Mount Holly Police Department Superior Officers Association, we write to formally express our escalating concerns regarding the safety and overall conditions surrounding the Township’s annual Fourth of July fireworks event in Mount Holly. These concerns are also shared and supported by the Mount Holly Township Police Department Chief of Police.

This letter is not intended as a personal criticism of those who organize, support, or enjoy the event. The officers represented by our union and associations take great pride in actively supporting community events, both in and out of uniform, including events organized on our own time such as the recent Touch-a-Truck event and last summer’s PBA Back-to-School Backpack Drive.

That is exactly why these concerns are being raised. This position is not coming from officers trying to avoid community events; it is coming from officers who help make them happen and who care deeply about ensuring they remain safe, positive, and sustainable. However, that same responsibility requires us to provide an honest assessment based on firsthand experience, documented incidents, current public-safety concerns, and the increasing trend of unsafe conditions.

Background and Purpose

Over the past several years, the level of disorder associated with this event has steadily increased. Each year, the environment has become more chaotic, unpredictable, and increasingly difficult to manage. Based on the pattern observed by officers assigned to this event, we believe meaningful changes are necessary before a participant, bystander, or officer suffers serious injury.

A community event intended to bring people together should not become an event that residents, families, visitors, officers, or assisting agencies view as unsafe or unmanageable. Unfortunately, we have received consistent feedback from residents, visitors, and outside agencies indicating a reluctance to return to Mount Holly for this event due to safety concerns. This reputational impact to the Township should not be overlooked.

Escalating Disorder and Juvenile-Related Incidents

A particularly troubling trend has been the noticeable rise in large, disorderly groups, especially involving juveniles. These gatherings have become more unpredictable and, at times, volatile.

During last year’s fireworks event alone, officers encountered multiple incidents requiring police intervention, including incidents that required the use of force. Officers also responded to violent altercations involving juveniles, including an incident where a child was knocked from a stroller during a fight between teenagers.

These are not isolated or minor disturbances. They reflect a pattern of escalating and dangerous behavior that must be addressed before the event continues in its current form.

Current Public-Safety Climate

These concerns are further heightened by the recent uptick in violence within the Township, including no-hit shootings and other violent incidents that have required significant police response and investigative resources.

While these incidents are separate from the fireworks event itself, they are relevant to the overall public safety environment in which this event is being planned. Large, uncontrolled gatherings require greater caution when they occur during a period of increased violence, heightened community tension, and increased demand on police resources.

Regional Concerns and Comparable Events

This is not an isolated issue unique to Mount Holly. Recent events in neighboring communities have highlighted this growing regional concern. Other nearby communities have been forced to cancel, restrict, or significantly modify public events due to similar safety concerns involving large groups, juvenile disorder, and the need for stronger crowd-control measures.

These examples underscore a broader trend: without proactive planning and substantial safeguards, large public gatherings are increasingly vulnerable to disorder, violence, and serious safety risks.

Operational and Equipment Concerns

These concerns are compounded by current operational limitations, including limited vehicle availability, aging patrol vehicles, increased investigative demands from recent violent incidents, and the lack of adequate crowd-management equipment for an event of this scale.

However, the union’s concern is not limited to staffing or equipment alone. In prior years, the Township has utilized many standard operational safeguards associated with large public events, including police staffing, mutual aid coordination, EMS and fire staging, communication planning, designated command structure, ingress and egress planning, emergency access considerations, and other operational controls. Despite those efforts, the event has continued to present serious disorder, crowd management issues, and officer-safety concerns.

As a result, the union does not believe this is simply a matter of adding another layer of planning to the

existing model. The concern is that the current fireworks event, by its nature, attendance pattern, crowd behavior, location, and recent history, has outgrown the Township’s ability to manage it safely and responsibly under the present format.

Requested Review and Corrective Action

Despite the Chief of Police and police administration repeatedly communicating these concerns, meaningful corrective action has not been taken. At this point, we respectfully request that the Township conduct a formal after-action review of prior fireworks including police reports, CAD data, calls for service, arrests, use-of-force documentation, mutual aid needs, EMS responses, body-worn camera footage, and officer safety concerns.

That review should also account for the Township’s current public-safety climate, including the recent increase in violent incidents and the impact those incidents have had on staffing, investigative workload, and operational readiness. These materials would provide an objective and unfiltered understanding of the conditions officers have been required to manage.

We are cognizant of the Township’s budgetary constraints and recognize that any large-scale public event requires a significant commitment of financial and operational resources. However, based on prior years, the resources necessary to safely manage this event in its current form would far exceed what has historically been provided. More importantly, even with standard public-safety safeguards in place, the underlying safety concerns have not been resolved.

For that reason, the union is not comfortable representing that this event can be made sufficiently safe simply by increasing police presence, adding equipment, or repeating prior operational plans.

While additional resources may reduce some risk, they do not address the core concern: the current event model continues to generate conditions that are unsafe, unpredictable, and increasingly difficult to control.

Accordingly, the union’s primary recommendation is that the Township discontinue the current fireworks event model and pursue an alternative community celebration that does not carry the same level of foreseeable risk. Alternative events, such as a parade, smaller controlled gathering, or other family-oriented community celebration, may better serve the Township while reducing the safety concerns associated with the current fireworks event.

Formal Notice and Union Position

Given the continued increase in disorderly conduct, calls for police intervention, recent violent incidents, and documented safety concerns, the current structure of this event places officers, residents, families, visitors, and assisting agencies at unnecessary and foreseeable risk. These concerns are not speculative.

They are based on firsthand officer experience, documented prior incidents, current operational limitations, and the broader public-safety climate presently facing the Township.

This letter is intended to place the Township on formal notice that the union does not believe the Fourth of July fireworks event should continue in its current form. The union position is firm: the current model is no longer safe, no longer sustainable, and no longer appropriate given the conditions officers have been required to manage.

Once these concerns have been formally placed before the Township, any decision to continue the event against the recommendation of police administration and the affected police unions would be a conscious decision to proceed despite known and foreseeable risks. Such a decision would reflect a failure to give proper weight to the documented safety concerns raised by those directly responsible for managing the event on the ground.

As such, the union can no longer support the event in its current form. The union remains willing to participate in a planning meeting, after-action review, or operational discussion regarding safer alternatives. However, our willingness to participate in those discussions should not be misinterpreted as support for continuing the event in its present form.

We respectfully request that these concerns be addressed before any final decision is made to continue the event. If the Township elects to proceed despite this formal notice, it should do so with a clear understanding that the resulting safety, operational, and liability consequences were foreseeable, documented, and raised in advance by the law enforcement professionals responsible for protecting the event.

We remain committed to the safety of our officers and the community we serve. That commitment requires us to state plainly that continuing the current fireworks model, without replacement or substantial change beyond previously attempted safeguards, would be an unacceptable risk to the Township, its residents, its visitors, and its police officers.

Respectfully,

Burlington County Policemen’s Benevolent Association Local #37

On behalf of the Mount Holly Police Department Police Officers Association

and the Mount Holly Police Department Superior Officers Association

With the support of the Mount Holly Chief of Police

Township Manger Response