Newport Beach arrests 402 after Fourth of July crowd chaos

402 people were arrested in Newport Beach after a Fourth of July crowd surge turned the Balboa Peninsula and Newport Pier area into a sprawling public-safety response. Fireworks were fired into crowds and at officers, roads were blocked and one officer was struck by a mortar.

The disturbance began after tens of thousands of residents and visitors had already spent the day celebrating, then late-evening social media posts drew a large influx of juveniles and young adults to the waterfront. More than 350 officers from the Newport Beach Police Department and 17 regional law enforcement agencies responded, and an unlawful assembly was declared as thousands of pedestrians were cleared from the roadway and vehicle traffic stayed closed for hours.

About 200 of the arrests were tied to the area near 28th Street after repeated dispersal orders were ignored. The crowd blocked roadways, restricted emergency vehicle access and threw mortars, fireworks and other projectiles at officers and into densely packed crowds, including near families with children. A Pavilions grocery store was looted during the chaos, and the officer hit by a mortar was evaluated by Newport Beach Fire Department personnel before being released.

The city’s fire department responded to 102 emergency incidents on July 4, including 10 fires, and transported 44 patients to local hospitals, among them six trauma patients. The arrest total was far higher than the 60 arrests Newport Beach police made during the same midnight July 3 to 6 a.m. July 5 period in 2025.

City planning for the holiday had already included expanded Safety Enhancement Zones in West Newport Beach and Corona del Mar, along with a mobile booking station and additional police and fire staffing. Fireworks of all types are illegal in Newport Beach, and holiday guidance encourages people to use the Balboa Peninsula Trolley, which serves 22 stops and runs about every 15 minutes with extra service during holiday periods.