Cleveland’s 149th St. Patrick’s Day Parade commemorated the 1916 Irish rebellion against the British, but there was no rebellion today.
Police said there were no arrests or major disturbances during the massive parade, which stretched west down Superior Avenue through downtown. Thousands lined the street donned in green, but there was plenty of blue visible as well.
Police on foot, motorcycle and horseback lined the parade route. At a pre-parade press conference, police touted their network of surveillance cameras and a bomb sniffing dog to stop problems before they happened.
Cleveland St. Patrick's Day Parade!
Posted by Derick Waller on Thursday, March 17, 2016
"We don't practice any kind of profiling,” Bureau of Homeland Services Commander Harold Peretel said. “We profile behavior and I'd ask the public's help in profiling behavior.”
Nicole Petrich attended the parade with her 2-year-old daughter. She was nervous about bringing a toddler to an event that has been known to get rowdy in the past.
”I’ve been here in the past where I wasn’t around a family atmosphere. It was more like drinking and people getting crazy, so I have never seen the family side of it before,” Petrich said. “It’s good. It’s better than I thought it would be.”
Post-parade, police urged the public not to drink and drive.
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