WTF Cops shut us down
#41
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
Originally Posted by chirpin4th
I was told that if the private property has public access then it doesn't matter if you got permission or not.
I found a decent pic of the spot from satellite, and as you can see, it is right by the interstate and a major road. The spot is awesome, but the cop said that anyone could walk across the lot, so that is what makes it illegal. He said that we would need fencing completely around the spot that would be sturdy enough to hold back a bike, so that any idiot going by can't get hurt. In all the years that I have been around VB, the cops havn't changed. They always want to protect the dumbasses that don't know any better. I don't know about you guys, but if I see a bunch of bikes on one wheel, playing around...I am not gonna step in front of them. I posted this pic up hoping some one has a suggestion on what to say to the city attorney about that spot.
Anyway, sucks that they shut us down...and I really really need some place to practice!! I might have to call in sick someday this week and run around the industrial parks by my house and start talking to owners about using their lots. I think out there we won't get as much bs...especially if one has a fence around it.
Alvin...good luck with the endo ticket, and good luck with the city attorney. I will let ya know if I come up with something for a spot....damn I need somewhere to practice....I zuck really bad!!
#42
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
i'd go to the library too and look up the revised code for va and then look at the city's stuff write the **** down and know the exact law for riding on the property. cops make up stuff all the time and they are not always right. i had a problem similar to this in ohio before i came down here. the thing in ohio was the dirtbike on the street (brother in law lived eight houses down) all i had to do was get a sticker on the dirtbike and i was legal to ride on just about anything but city roads and interstates. i learned this after it got impounded once i wasn't even speeding when this happened. well i had the sticker and had the booklet with me that said what i was doing was legal and even highlighted the passages. i had never seen a sherrif so pissed in my life but there was absolutely nothing he could do. i actually had to read the book to him to keep from going to jail but he had no idea. hell i have to go for a week but i'm going to look into this when i come back if you are still having problems cause to me there's nothing better than pissing off cops when they cant do anything about it.
#43
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Dallas,TX
Age: 44
Posts: 3,519
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
Ok i talked to the Senior City Attorney Chris Boynton today. I told him the whole story of us stunt riding in the lot. Virginia Code for Reckless Driving (46.2-852) states that it MUST be on "HIGHWAY". Now what exactly is considered Highway (46.2-100) is where grey areas exist. Cops can enforce DUI on private property. And owners of private property must complain to get action from police. We have permission so the owner thing is no problem. It sounds like we can ride there according to the VA CODE because the parking lot is not "HIGHWAY" BUT, the Attorney told me the police can pretty much do what they want out there. SO, I'm going to stop by the precinct tonight with the info I got from the city attorney along with copies of all the VA Codes, and see what they say. Maybe with some begging and pleading this might work but I dunno.
#44
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Atlanta, GA, USA
Posts: 7
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
I just dont understand, if they were really worried about everyones safety in public then they wouldnt give us such a hard time with stuntin in a non-public spot, I think the do it to just get us on the streets hoping we get hurt, or get busted and run, its a **** or get ****ed situation,
#46
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
The one thing about cops is they need to see evidence. Cops love evidence, no matter what it is. The cops are going to say that when they "saw" you it appeared to be reckless. You need to have evidence that shows you are not reckless, so if you have any footage of you stunt riding at THAT parking lot then bring it. You need to demonstrate that you have total control of your bike without a doubt. More than half of society doesn't know what a wheelie is, and there are so many squids out there f$%king it up for the rest of us that cops mostly assume we just don't have a clue what we are doing. So my suggestion to you is you need to come up with evidence that shows you are safe, that you have complete control of your bike, and that you have been doing this for a long time... then you need to relate this to their life. For example... cops spend hours firing their sidearms. They are trained (hopefully) in shooting their firearm accurately and with a controlled state of mind. So, you need to relate how much practice you put into this sport and that this is no different than anything else, with enough practice you know how to control a VERY OUT OF control device. (guns & motorcycles). With your City Attorney discussion and your Virginia Revised Statutes, along with your written permission you should be able to demonstrate you want this badly enough. Consider this a sales call, either they are going to sell you on the fact that you SHOULDN'T ride, or you are going to sell them on the fact that you SHOULD be able to ride. GOOD LUCK!!
Last edited by N/A; 06-05-2006 at 03:51 PM.
#47
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
Farley, I like the idea of comparing our practice with the officers target practice...good point!!
Alvin, I have a little bit of footage from that night as well as some in some other spots on the tape that I have in my camera. Do you know when you might be going down there tonight? I probably can't get out til later, but if you want me to go or you want to borrow the camcorder, that would be ok. Of course if you think it will help...cuz we both know you will get out there a hell of a lot more than I will...even though I need the practice more!!
What really pisses me off is that I was gonna try the cheater peg the next time I went out, and that's when the first cop showed up....bastard.
Alvin, I have a little bit of footage from that night as well as some in some other spots on the tape that I have in my camera. Do you know when you might be going down there tonight? I probably can't get out til later, but if you want me to go or you want to borrow the camcorder, that would be ok. Of course if you think it will help...cuz we both know you will get out there a hell of a lot more than I will...even though I need the practice more!!
What really pisses me off is that I was gonna try the cheater peg the next time I went out, and that's when the first cop showed up....bastard.
#48
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Dallas,TX
Age: 44
Posts: 3,519
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
Yea i really like that idea about the target practice comparo-BUT cops don't target practice behind Kmart--I don't know if i should bring that up lol-i need some sort of an approach--this cop has no clue what we do he may as well think we're doing 100mph wheelies in there.
I got some footage on my camera too maybe i can bring that down with me.
I got some footage on my camera too maybe i can bring that down with me.
Last edited by Armenian; 06-05-2006 at 05:39 PM.
#49
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
Obviously you don't want to compare locations... what you are trying to point out is the amount of time you take to perfect this sport. It takes time to perfect shooting a gun, hitting a target center mass 8/9 times with little to no time seperation between shots at 25 yards. This takes months, even years to perfect. You have tried to do this the proper way, even getting signed permission from the property owner and blocking off the lot to the general public. I'm not the brightest person in the world but I'd assume you are taking safety measures far beyond what most riders would do.
To me, in order to practice your "passion", you go to a designated area that allows this. Do you practice football on a gym floor? Do you play baseball on a football field? Is shooting a gun behind a KMart legal?? Nope! But the correlation is, football fields are for football, baseball fields are for baseball, shooting ranges are for guns, parking lots are for motorcycles (well, and parking cars but we don't care about that)... shooting ranges and stunting in a parking lot all need to have the proper legal documentation to condone such activities. Thus far, you have taken steps to prove you are an upstanding citizen that has realized from past experiences (ex: a driving record 3 pages long full of traffic infractions) that you have grown past that phase and would like to do this safely so neither you, or an innocent bystander is hurt. If I were you, I might jog up recent accident reports resulting in injury/dismemberment/death involving sport bikes within your county and/or state. Prove to the law that there are bad apples out there that spoil it for us all, but you are not one of them.
Sorry, I may be rambling at this point but hopefully some of this stirs up some ideas for you guys. Like I said, go in with an angle, dress nice, be presentable... this is a sales call. Jump through their hoops, play their game, but march to your own drummer.
To me, in order to practice your "passion", you go to a designated area that allows this. Do you practice football on a gym floor? Do you play baseball on a football field? Is shooting a gun behind a KMart legal?? Nope! But the correlation is, football fields are for football, baseball fields are for baseball, shooting ranges are for guns, parking lots are for motorcycles (well, and parking cars but we don't care about that)... shooting ranges and stunting in a parking lot all need to have the proper legal documentation to condone such activities. Thus far, you have taken steps to prove you are an upstanding citizen that has realized from past experiences (ex: a driving record 3 pages long full of traffic infractions) that you have grown past that phase and would like to do this safely so neither you, or an innocent bystander is hurt. If I were you, I might jog up recent accident reports resulting in injury/dismemberment/death involving sport bikes within your county and/or state. Prove to the law that there are bad apples out there that spoil it for us all, but you are not one of them.
Sorry, I may be rambling at this point but hopefully some of this stirs up some ideas for you guys. Like I said, go in with an angle, dress nice, be presentable... this is a sales call. Jump through their hoops, play their game, but march to your own drummer.
Last edited by N/A; 06-05-2006 at 06:51 PM.
#50
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
man these va beach cops need to come down off their high horse around here. they need to go catch all the little ho-mo's in their scion's doing 120 weaving in and out of traffic on 264 and leave us the hell alone. it's crap that you can't even get down the street around here without being followed even before you give them a reason to. there are no more or less squids around here than anywhere else but the freakin cops hate anything but harleys around here and it's total crap. i'm not about to ride a vespa or a goldwing and i'd rather be shot than see myself on a harley. i started riding in cleveland just after the star boys blew up the 6 o'clock news rockin the highway by a school bus and it wasn't even that bad there. f the ignorant rednecks and their blue and red lights. we're probably better off riding in richmond or somewhere in west virginia.
#54
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
just find a new spot ya beotty. that spot is in the middle of everything looks busy round there. im not suprised u got kicked out. happens all the time no matter where u are. do like most of us and look for a different spot. if u would use u head u could find one that ull have for monthes maybe years who know. *****
#59
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
fu<k police... express those words to them next time they pull that ****, there not leggally alloud to , call a free aturney and ask them... thats BS bro, get teh facts and next time shove it in the dam faces, fu<kin pigs
#60
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Fayetteville, AR
Age: 45
Posts: 109
Re: WTF Cops shut us down
I skipped the replies b/c honestly I'm too tired to read them, but this is what you need to do.
Contact the PD, City, and owners of property around your stunt area. As long as you set this up as a scheduled event (one a month, week, what ever) that both the PD and city know about they will work with you.
I did this in my town 3 years ago, and we were allowed to stunt at my shop for bike nights until it got too late and the noise was a problem. Usually cops would come watch. Anyway, when I was setting this up the city actually offered to close down a side street for us to use every once in a while. Unfortunately there was not enough interest in stunting to make that happen.
You should have no problem working this out, just remember to be polite and professional.
Unidentified...actually they can get you for wreckless just about anywhere they want as long as they see the act in progress. I got a wreckless ticket for drifting in a closed parking lot. My lawyer was able to get it reduced, but she could not fight the fact that they did have power there.
Contact the PD, City, and owners of property around your stunt area. As long as you set this up as a scheduled event (one a month, week, what ever) that both the PD and city know about they will work with you.
I did this in my town 3 years ago, and we were allowed to stunt at my shop for bike nights until it got too late and the noise was a problem. Usually cops would come watch. Anyway, when I was setting this up the city actually offered to close down a side street for us to use every once in a while. Unfortunately there was not enough interest in stunting to make that happen.
You should have no problem working this out, just remember to be polite and professional.
Unidentified...actually they can get you for wreckless just about anywhere they want as long as they see the act in progress. I got a wreckless ticket for drifting in a closed parking lot. My lawyer was able to get it reduced, but she could not fight the fact that they did have power there.
Last edited by Godfather1138; 06-06-2006 at 01:10 AM.