Some Hercules residents want the City Council to adopt an ordinance that would limit the number of people who can attend a house party, to prevent a recurrence of a recent gathering of several hundred people on Turquoise Drive that ended with two people shot.

But the police chief says such an ordinance would not pass constitutional muster.

About 200 to 300 young people spilled from a loud house party in the 400 block of Turquoise Drive about 10 p.m. Oct. 17 as police arrived after a report that someone standing outside had fired at the house. An 18-year-old Hercules resident and a 16-year-old Rodeo resident were taken to hospitals for treatment and released.

Three weeks later, police arrested a 16-year-old North Richmond boy and a 19-year-old Richmond man on suspicion of assault, firing into a dwelling and gang enhancements; police say the shooting was a gang-related act of retaliation. Police are seeking a third suspect.

The party was organized by a local party promoter and advertised via e-mail and social media, said police Chief Fred Deltorchio. Police broke up a large party at the same address Aug. 23.

"The city needs to have an ordinance to address large private parties," resident Dan Romero said, addressing the Hercules City Council on Oct. 27. He suggested that any gathering of 75 or more people should have to go to a hall.

"Why does it take someone being shot, to address large gatherings?" Romero said, calling for a

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more proactive approach by authorities to stop the large parties from happening in the first place rather than wait until someone commits a crime.

But Deltorchio, in an e-mail, said, "The First Amendment rights to assembly and free association place clear restrictions on any government attempts to prohibit or limit gatherings which do not include some unlawful activity.

"Article I, Section 3 of the California Constitution also prohibits government from enacting blanket laws to prohibit assembly and association of its citizens. That is why all current laws used to regulate crowds require some underlying wrongdoing to pass constitutional muster."

The restrictions apply to government but not to private entities such as homeowners associations, which can pass regulations to restrict attendance at events in a home, Deltorchio said.

"A flat cap on the number of persons allowed to attend events at someone's home would be struck down by the courts," he said.

Police do have broad discretion to intervene when laws are broken, Deltorchio said — typically, when parties get too noisy and when minors drink alcohol.

Writing on the city Web site several days after the shooting, Deltorchio said, "Members of our community should be aware that private parties involving hundreds of people are not permitted at private residences within Hercules."

He clarified his comment last week, explaining it was "intended to solicit neighborhood participation in reporting parties which by their very nature are disturbing to the community," due to factors such as loud music, noise, alcohol consumed by minors or in public view.

That kind of neighborhood participation apparently was lacking before the Oct. 17 shooting.

"What has happened to our quiet, peace-loving city of Hercules?" Romero said. "How could 300 kids show up to a private home in Hercules and not one neighbor called to the Police Department? Do the citizens of Hercules not care what happens to the community?

Reach Tom Lochner at 510-262-2760.