Increase in bike tickets due to Crank Mob
Thread started by
ZoomZoomChris at 03.26.09 - 9:53 pm
Well I just got a ticket downtown tonight for biking on the sidewalk and for not having lights. I've been city biking for over 8 years now and this is my first time getting a ticket on my bike. I asked the cops if they were cracking down on bicycle infractions for any particular reason and was told they were getting "a lot of complaints." I mentioned Crank Mob, and one officer nodded.
This sucks as I'm strapped for cash but in the long wrong I guess it's better for safety.
Just thought I'd give a heads-up for people who ride downtown.
P.S. Why can't cops just give me a beating like the good ole days instead of giving me a ticket in which I have to pay administrative fees and all that BS?
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because then ur gonna bitch about getting a beating.
get ready for more dude.
oh and if u ride with headphones, expect a 164 dollar ticket.
KiMS103.26.09 - 9:59 pm
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holy shit that fuckn sucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
+0
lucifur66603.26.09 - 10:02 pm
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you should have had lights anyway.
Gav03.26.09 - 10:05 pm
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I thought it wasn't illegal to ride on the sidewalk in LA. Unless you endangered people or property.
(LAMC 56.15) Prohibits the riding of bicycles (or other human power devices) on sidewalks (bikeways or boardwalks) with a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property. Disallows the riding of bicycles on Ocean Front Walk in Venice.
skd03.26.09 - 10:05 pm
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Yeah, be careful on Saturday.
https://www.lasuperiorcourt.org/bail/pdf/misd.pdf has the list of the fine amounts.
It's interesting reading, but please note the following bummer language:
An additional penalty of $26 shall be levied upon every $10, or part of $10, upon every fine, penalty, or forfeiture
imposed by and collected by the court for criminal offenses.
In addition to the penalty calculated above, Penal Code § 1465.7(a) requires imposition on criminal offenses of a state
surcharge equal to 20 percent of the base fine used to calculate the state penalty assessment as specified in Penal Code
§ 1464(a).
Penal Code § 1465.8 requires imposition of an additional fee of $20 for court security on every conviction for a criminal
offense, including a traffic offense, except parking offenses as defined in Penal Code § 1463.
Government Code § 70373 requires the imposition of a conviction assessment, on every conviction for a criminal offense,
including a traffic offense, in the amount of $30 for each misdemeanor and $35 for each infraction.
That's how the $25 fine for "Use of Crosswalks Where Prohibited by Sign" becomes $164. If they actually bust you for running the red instead of knocking it down, that's a $400+ fee.
Yes, you can fight this stuff using postponements/trials by declaration, etc. but it's nice to not have to deal with the paperwork/headaches.
JB03.26.09 - 10:20 pm
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I've actually reduced the use of my headphones for the last, few weeks.
Not because of safety, but the fact that I miss booming my box and the music I have right now is getting kind of old.
bentstrider03.26.09 - 10:26 pm
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Just to clarify, I was cordial with the officers and vice versa so they dropped the sidewalk thang and just gave me a fix-it ticket for the lights, but still this is BS. My friend was walking and I was slooooooowly biking next to him in total control.
What's next? Required knee pads and nut cups?
ZoomZoomChris03.26.09 - 10:26 pm
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would you not expect the police to pull over a car for driving with its lights off? even if its going very slowly?
ruinedbyidiots03.26.09 - 10:29 pm
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I wonder how they would go on about doing the cup checking...
Avis_One03.26.09 - 10:31 pm
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big difference RIB, a dark car is a lot more dangerous to
others than a bicycle is.
toweliesbong03.26.09 - 10:32 pm
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thats stupid. there is no law requiring cups to be worn while riding a bike.
ruinedbyidiots03.26.09 - 10:32 pm
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Do cups even protect anything?!?!?!?
A nut-shot's a nutshot, there's no ballistic protection for that!!!
bentstrider03.26.09 - 10:34 pm
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if you were walking your bike on the sidewalk, like youre supposed to do, they wouldnt have hassled you for not having lights. plain and simple.
ruinedbyidiots03.26.09 - 10:37 pm
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Actually, I think LAPD will be hesitant to ticket cyclists after CRANK MOB. Captain Davis, head of Wilshire Division, issued a statement yesterday canceling the tickets of cyclists who received tickets for bike licenses. Moreover, they're getting hammered in the press, and I know of officers internally who are upset with how Wilshire Division handled Saturday night.
Riding on the sidewalk is legal in LA so long as you do so safely. What exact code were you cited for?
Let's not be alarmist here - if you look at the actual fall out from Saturday, it is favorable to cyclists.
Alex Thompson03.26.09 - 11:00 pm
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I think there might be a law forbidding sidewalk cycling in downtown business districts. How you would keep track of the exact boundaries of that is anybody's guess.
angle03.26.09 - 11:06 pm
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the cops wont hand out tix after the crank mob incident? LOL. I'd buy that for a dollar.
the cops and the general public dont care for these bike ride. cops are just paying lip service. that's my cycnical bet.
Roadblock03.26.09 - 11:22 pm
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"the cops wont hand out tix after the crank mob incident? LOL. I'd buy that for a dollar. "
Amen.
There were a number of other people (myself included) who got ticketed on crankmob for reasons having nothing to do with bike licenses.
From what ZoomZoomChris and myself have witnessed, the cops have been taking a lot of heat for allowing cyclists to break the law, so they're stuck in the middle.
It's a safe bet that they'll be double checking the codebooks before this weekend to avoid future embarrassment when citing cyclists, and assuming Officer P. was being truthful, some ridazz may find themselves walking home.
Don't be alarmist, but try not to blatantly break the law in front of cops either, that's stupid, needlessly disrespectful, and potentially expensive.
JB03.26.09 - 11:36 pm
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Of course, this is a pretty silly thing to even debate, it will be pretty clear on Sunday what law enforcement's intent was, as we've got LACM, VCM & 328, all of which should be pretty well attended.
JB03.26.09 - 11:48 pm
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It's all about money. money money thats it....
pporras03.27.09 - 10:02 am
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this thread consitutes an unlawful assembly. failure to disperse will result in arrests, beatings and sodomy.
Officer_Schube03.27.09 - 2:28 pm
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@JB
It's a safe bet that they'll be double checking the codebooks before this weekend to avoid future embarrassment when citing cyclists, and assuming Officer P. was being truthful, some ridazz may find themselves walking home.
the problem is that officers are only checking the code book, not the law.
Here's what the code book says about 21202:
BIKE-SLOW MOVING Ride as near the right hand curb or edge of the roadway as
practicable. EXCEPTIONS: May use left on one way street."
This is the reason your friends keep getting bullshit tickets.
download my pamphlet. send me an email at project21202@gmail.com for a link.
tortuga_veloce03.27.09 - 2:31 pm
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I think the LAPD will be giving less tickets to
Alex Thompson after CRANK Mob because now they all know what a total badass he is. Everyone else, however, is not so lucky.
dokydoky03.27.09 - 7:12 pm
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Ridazz Roulette!
