Dave Edmunds has stories from the 20-plus Sundance Film Festivals he helped protect.
But the former sheriff of Summit County and onetime Park City police officer won’t mention names when he tells them.
Edmunds has a unique perspective on Sundance after having served with the two local law enforcement agencies in the Park City area. He was a Park City officer from the late 1990s until 2002 and then the sheriff from 2003 until 2015, a time of growth for Sundance and the community where it was held.
“It was pure insanity,” Edmunds, who now lives in the Salt Lake Valley and currently works for a family business after retiring from law enforcement, said in an interview as the final festival in Utah approached.
The 11 days of Sundance have long been an extraordinarily busy period for the Park City Police Department. There are parties across the community, the crowds on Main Street swell, nightclubs are jammed, celebrities seek the assistance of law enforcement and demonstrations are common. The traffic is usually some of the worst of the year and parking problems are reported across much of the community. The Police Department frequently enlists support from outside agencies for reinforcement. Law enforcement vehicles from a variety of agencies are often seen in Park City.
“Hollywood and all the madness of Hollywood came to Park City,” he said.
There was cocaine, fights broke out and crowds were large enough that it was difficult for the authorities to manage the people, he said. Park City, from the perspective of law enforcement, was at times as busy as anywhere he has worked. He oftentimes patrolled the overnight hours during Sundance, usually starting a shift at 6 p.m.
“It was as debauched and as crazy a scene in the late-1990s, 2000s, as I’ve ever seen or heard of in law enforcement,” Edmunds said.
Years later, he said, he remains hesitant to share some of the details. Cases he worked involved “explicit stuff,” he said. Law enforcement sometimes would bring vans to transport people who were arrested since there were so many of them, Edmunds said.
“100% my most favorite time in my career,” Edmunds said about policing Main Street during Sundance.