5 New Laws To Crackdown on Street Takeovers
PICO RIVERA — The Pico Rivera City Council announced on Wednesday, May 10, 2023 , it has tentatively approved an ordinance designed to crack down on illegal street takeovers by authorizing the impounding and possible forfeiture of vehicles involved in takeovers and making it a misdemeanor to participate or even be a spectator at such gatherings.
“This proposed ordinance and enforcement options will provide the city with additional tools to address the issue of illegal street takeovers, deter such activities, and ensure that the roadways in PicoRivera remain safe for everyone,” Councilman John Garcia said in a statement. “By taking action, we are sending a strong message that illegal street takeovers will not be tolerated in Pico Rivera and that the safety and well-being of its residents and visitors are paramount to the City Council.”
The council gave tentative approval to the ordinance Tuesday. The ordinance will return for a final vote at a future meeting, the date of which has not yet been determined.
Under the ordinance, anyone present at a location where an illegal street race or street takeover is occurring or even being planned will be guilty of a misdemeanor subject to fines of up to $2,000 and other possible penalties, according to the city.
Any motor vehicle involved in a street takeover “will be considered a nuisance and will be seized and subject to forfeiture,” city officials said.
“Upon seizure, the city manager or their Public Safety designee will investigate any potential claimants to the vehicle and send a seizure notice to the legal owner within 10 days of seizure,” according to a statement from the city. “This notice will allow the legal owner to request a post-seizure hearing with a third-party administrator to determine the validity of the seizure.”
Beverly Hills
Last February, Beverly Hills Police Department officers arrested five people in connection with a street takeover at the intersection of Cañon Drive and Lomitas Avenue. Approximately 100 cars blocked all six points of access to the intersection while drivers performed stunts in front of spectators who watched and documented it with their phones.
With a proposed ordinance that would allow the city to seize cars in connection with street takeovers and have them forfeited by the owners, police and city officials are trying to send a clear message to any drivers who plan to race down or block Beverly Hills streets, they said.
“I think passing this ordinance will help us in setting that tone of, ‘If you come here, we are going to go after you,”’ Police Chief Mark Stainbrook said during the Jan. 3 City Council study session.
The proposal is modeled after two ordinances the city of Paramount adopted in late 2020, which declares vehicles used in street races as “nuisances,” establishes a legal procedure for forfeiting nuisance vehicles and for prosecuting street race spectators, according to a staff report.
From January 2021 through August 2022, the Paramount ordinances have resulted in 137 arrests; 272 notice to appear [in court] citations for speeding, modified exhausts and vehicle modifications; 78 notice to appear citations for spectators; and 145 administrative citations for spectators. Additionally, 177 vehicles have been impounded and stored, and 25 vehicles have been confiscated.
Beverly Hills has already adopted an ordinance that prohibits spectators at street races, and spectators can be fined up to $1,000 or sentenced to six months in jail or both, Lt. Robert Maycott said. Still not effective. In fact, it got worse.
But in drafting the ordinance for the forfeiture of vehicles, the City Council wanted to go beyond the law passed in Paramount.
During the study session, council members asked if the police department would be able to use the ordinance to issue citations based on drone footage, confiscate cars that someone was using in a “speed contest” with themselves rather than against other people, or to confiscate cars with modified exhausts and other illegal specifications.
Police officers and city attorney Laurence Wiener, however, were unsure if the ordinance could include such provisions.
Referring to the potential of using drone footage to issue citations, Sgt. Dale Drummond said, “you would be basing the speed off of a time distance analysis, which can then constitute a speed trap, which is not allowed in the [California] vehicle code.”
Drummond added that it is unlikely a judge would allow drone footage of a speeding vehicle to be used in court.
Drone footage, however, is an essential tool in deterring street takeovers in the first place, Stainbrook said. The footage will help allocate officers to areas where people might be gathering for a race or takeover. The officers can then use other resources to pull them over and potentially confiscate their cars, he said. Video footage could be used as evidence for other charges against street racers, like reckless driving, Stainbrook added.
Officers use other means of surveillance to prevent takeovers, namely social media, where they monitor groups that organize the illegal events, Stainbrook said.
“The importance of intelligence can’t be underestimated,” he added.
Collaborating with California Highway Patrol and neighboring jurisdictions also helps the BHPD prevent street races and takeovers, Stainbrook said. In one instance, CHP alerted the BHPD about a planned takeover, and BHPD deployed officers to the area before any racers arrived, he added.
There are currently 28 BHPD officers who attend CHP trainings on street takeovers, Maycott said.
FORT WORTH, Texas — Texas Governor Greg Abbott and other North Texas and law enforcement leaders met Wednesday as Abbott ceremoniously signed two bills that address street racing in the state.
Abbott was joined by Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker, Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes, Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Weybourn and Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw to speak on the impact of the laws and interagency cooperation in addressing street racing and street takeovers in Texas.
On July 30, the governor called to have Texas DPS troopers policing city streets. The controversial call came after Austin police called on DPS for help during a street takeover event. At least five illegal street takeovers happened late Saturday night in Austin over a few hours.
Last month, a street takeover in Fort Worth led to a police chase and the arrests of five people. The group arrested in this incident were connected another set of viral Austin street takeovers that occurred in February, Fort Worth police said at the time.
On the evening of Feb. 18 and into the morning of Feb. 19, Austin police said they responded to seven street takeover events. A month later, police announced that 17 people were charged in connection to the incidents. The are committed to crackdown on Street Takeovers
Houston, Texas
Parking lot/street takeovers are a familiar sight for most residents in the Houston area. Drivers and event attendees typically pick a vacant area to show off different vehicles or perform certain tricks from behind the wheel.
Just one problem, it’s illegal.
Not only is it illegal, it’s extremely dangerous for those driving and those on the sidelines watching.
Harris County Precinct 2 Constable Jerry Garcia takes the issue seriously.
“We definitely want to get a handle on it these people. They’re doing bad things and usually what’s involved is drugs, alcohol, and weapons,” Constable Garcia said.
Last Sunday, three patrol units from Garcia’s department arrived within seven minutes of being alerted about a parking lot takeover in the 9900 block of Kleckley Drive.
“We conducted a traffic stop and wrote several citations,” Constable Garcia said.
Among those citations was an open container violation.
Empty beer bottles, broken parking pylons, and skid marks cover the parking lot.
Garcia said he is looking forward to Sept.1, 2023. That is when two new laws, HB 2899 and HB 1442, go into effect that will allow law enforcement to immediately impound vehicles and confiscate personal property, tied to street racing.
In October 2022, Florida law was enacted to curtail the dangerous rise in street-racing incidents on Florida roadways.
Section 316.191, Florida Statutes outlaws racing on streets and highways, street takeovers, and stunt driving, as so defined in the statute. The law bans unsanctioned drag racing, street takeovers, drifting, wheelies, burnouts, and donuts.
Cars, trucks, motorcycles, ATVs and other wheeled vehicles are prohibited from participating in any “street takeover, stunt driving, race, speed competition or contest, drag race or acceleration contest, test of physical endurance, or exhibition of speed or acceleration on highway, roadway, or parking lot.”
This criminal activity, which endangers the general public and prohibits law enforcement and first responders from aiding actual emergency and non-emergency events, will not be tolerated.
- In Florida, between 2018 and 2022, there were 6,641 citations issued for either street racing/stunt driving – a first-degree misdemeanor – or for actively participating as a spectator – classified as a non-criminal traffic infraction. Both are identified in Section 316.191, Florida Statutes.
- Primary age ranges identified are 16-29 – both as participants and spectators.
THE REALITY:
The problem with this is that not one of these bills. Street racing has been illegal in every state for decades and today, it is worse than ever. The fix is strict punishment:
I’ve seen many suggestions by outraged resident groups, city councils and automotive journalists.
Here are some of the more strict punitive efforts that they suggest could start turning the tide:
FIRST OFFENSE:
Mandatory 60 days in jail
Impound the car for 90 days
Automatic one year suspension of the driver’s license
Big fines $5,000+ or even reparation payments to fix the street damage
SECOND OFFENSE
Seize the car and auction it or crush it.
Mandatory one year jail.
3 year suspension of driver’s license.
5 year probation for any further speeding infractions.
This is just a sample of what is being floated. Whatever the final solution, it will need to separate the offender from the vchicle, whether the vehicle is taken away or the offender goes jail.