The weekend before fall semester classes began, Sioux City Police patrolled the Morningside area, seeming to be aware that students were planning to participate in “survivor night”.

“Survivor night” is an end of pre-season tradition where multiple off-campus houses host parties throughout the weekend. These parties were meant to celebrate the survival of pre-season conditioning and practicing before the semester begins for the college students. 

“It’s a weekend where we can just relax and enjoy the time we have with our newfound friends on our sports’ teams, a break in between a stressful time of conditioning and practicing every day that turns into classes and homework as well as preparing for seasonal games,” an anonymous source said.

Typically, the athletes wanting to take will choose a date that is two or three weekends before school starts, ensuring only pre-season athletes would be in attendance. Some students were shocked to learn that this year’s gaggle of parties were planned to happen only days before the first day of classes. 

With it being that close to the start of the school year, many who were not a part of a sports’ team and already on campus for pre-season, attended these parties, almost doubling the size they would have originally been.

One reason the amount of people attending the parties that weekend was unexpectedly high could be that Morningside welcomed the third-largest freshmen class in the last two decades, according to a Morningside press release. This increase for sure bumped the party attendance up quite a few notches.

The number of students attending the multiple off-campus parties was the leading reason police were able to find the parties so quickly. They were quick to follow students who were wandering the streets at late hours of the night. The police weren’t looking to make any arrests but they did want to ensure that students saw their active role in the community.

In fact, News 7 KWWL reported that police in Dubuque, Iowa, did this same thing by going out at the beginning of the semester “not to just bust parties, but rather to talk with students… about practicing safe habits this school year”.

This seemed to be the same goal Sioux City Police had in mind when they went out.

Although they knocked on doors and stopped students walking around at night with back-packs, police decided to give students simple warnings instead of handing out fines or arrests, one anonymous student said.

“They said that if we were not 21, we just had to dump out the alcohol and then we could be on our way for the night,” said the source. “But, they warned us that this would not be the case for every weekend.”

One attorney’s office, Worgul, Sarna, & Ness Criminal Defense Attorneys, warns of the consequences that ensue when a house party is busted. Police will bust a house party due to complaints, but they usually can’t enter the house unless they suspect illegal activities. Drunk teenagers outside of the house can be enough cause. If found to be partaking in illegal drugs or drinking when you’re a minor, serious consequences most likely will occur that align state guidelines and consequences.