Nassau police target violence at house parties

Responding to two deadly shootings at house parties last weekend, Nassau Police Commissioner Lawrence W. Mulvey said a team of officers has been assigned to find large gatherings on Fridays and Saturdays and ensure they don't spin out of control.

Beginning Friday, four officers from the Bureau of Special Operations will work exclusively on locating large gatherings, some of which police said are advertised on social networking sites such as Twitter, and will make sure partygoers are not breaking any laws.

"It's not that we want to be party poopers," Mulvey said in an interview. "We want people to be safe."

The move, Mulvey said, was prompted by two unrelated shootings in Lakeview and Uniondale last weekend that left two men dead and four others injured.

In the Lakeview shooting, which happened at about 1:15 a.m. on Saturday, a Hempstead man was shot dead and two other men were shot in the arms, police had said, and the gunfire appeared to be random.

Police said that the birthday party at 432 Locust Ct. was posted on Twitter and may have drawn guests who may not have been invited by the organizers, said Det. Lt. Kevin Smith, a police spokesman. More than 100 people were at the gathering, with partygoers spilling out onto the front lawn and into the street, Smith said.

In the Uniondale case, which occurred Sunday, Jason Crafton of Queens was shot and killed by someone at the party, police had said.

Smith said neighbors told police that partygoers were being charged admission fees of $1 to $2. This type of party, Smith said, tends to bring strangers to the gatherings.

Before social networking sites became a popular form of communication, Smith said people advertised parties by passing out fliers in the neighborhoods and in schools.

In addition to relying on information from patrol officers and neighbors, the four officers assigned to crack down on large house parties will also check social networking sites, Smith said.

"We'll be scanning these social networking sites to see what's coming up this weekend," Smith said. "We have a goal and that is to see what's out there and see if we should be responding."