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September, 2001

BIKERS DRESS CODE CASE GOES TO HIGHER COURT

Trial dates have been postponed for 12 bikers challenging Carson City, Nevada's courthouse dress code which bans biker attire while lawyers argue about the constitutionality of the policy in a higher court, reported the July 24, 2001 edition of The Reno Gazette-Journal.

The bikers were to go to trial in Carson City Justice Court on misdemeanor trespass charges after they refused to leave the public building because of their leather jackets and biker vests, some of which sported patches featuring the swastika symbol.

But Justice of the Peace Robey Willis granted their request to transfer the debate to district court said Kevin Karp, a Nevada A.I.M. (Aid to Injured Motorcyclists) Attorney representing the bikers. Karp explained that justice and municipal court judges cannot rule on constitutional matters, which is at the heart of the courthouse dress-code debate.

As reported here earlier, two members of the Branded Few Motorcycle Club were arrested for trespassing on March 9, 2001 after they refused to take off their swastika-decorated club colors before entering the courthouse. At their arraignment, about 40 more bikers showed up in protest of the rules, and ten more were cited under the same violation.

. The policy, put in writing after the bikers were cited, doesn't allow people entering the second and third floors of the three-story courthouse to display motorcycle club patches, known as ''colors.'' Defending the rules, some district judges insist that a level of decorum must be maintained in the public building for safety reasons, and that the sight of the swastika symbol upsets some people.

But the bikers, who have pleaded not guilty to the trespassing charges, contend the courthouse dress code violates their First Amendment right of freedom of expression by limiting what they can wear in a public place, and they have vowed to take their fight all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary.

The bikers have attacked the courthouse policy in a federal lawsuit, but arguments in that case have not yet been heard.

However, U.S. District Judge Philip Pro denied a motion from the bikers to block the courthouse rules while their lawsuit is pending. Lawyer Don Evans, who represents all the bikers in the federal lawsuit, has filed for reconsideration of Pro's decision to deny the injunction.

''At the present time, in Carson City, Nevada, it is illegal to wear clothing into the county courthouse that shows you are affiliated with a biker or similar organization, and this rule is being applied to ALL motorcycle groups from H.O.G. to the one percenters,'' said Karp.

As legal counsel for the Northern Nevada Confederation of Clubs, Karp is representing the bikers who are currently facing criminal prosecutions, while attorney Don Evans is representing those motorcyclists and others in a civil rights action over the enforcement of this ''dress code.''

Motorcyclists are being unduly singled out as trouble makers requiring special treatment in Carson City, argues Karp. The entire phrase in the dress code is ''street gangs, bikers, or similar organizations.'' ''We expect victory in the criminal courts and in the federal courts and we intend to continue this pursuit until victory is attained,'' Karp concluded.

AS BICYCLE HELMET USE INCREASES, SO DO HEAD INJURIES

While millions of parents take it as an article of faith that putting a bicycle helmet on their children, or themselves, will help keep them out of harm's way, new data on bicycle accidents raises questions about how safe helmets really are.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the number of head injuries has increased 10 percent since 1991, even though bicycle helmet use has risen sharply, and in many cases is required by law. But given that ridership has declined over the same period, the rate of head injuries per active cyclist has increased 51 percent just as bicycle helmets have become widespread.

So, what is going on here, asked writer Julian E. Barnes in a July 29 article in The San Diego Union - Tribune? Almost none of the safety advocates interviewed for the story suggested that riders should stop wearing helmets, which researchers say can reduce the severity of brain injuries by as much as 88 percent, but still, with fewer people riding bicycles, experts are mystified as to why injuries are on the rise.

''It's puzzling to me that we can't find the benefit of bike helmets here,'' said Ronald L. Medford, the assistant executive director of the safety commission's hazard identification office.

Some cycling advocates contend that rising numbers of aggressive drivers are at fault, while others suggest that many riders wear helmets improperly and do not know the rules of the road. Some transportation engineers say there are not enough safe places to ride.

But many specialists in risk analysis argue that something else is in play. They believe that the increased use of bike helmets may have had an unintended consequence: riders may feel an inflated sense of security and take more risks.

In the last nine years, 19 state legislatures have passed mandatory bicycle helmet laws. Today, such statutes cover 49 percent of American children under 15.

Altogether, about half of all riders use bike helmets today, compared with fewer than 18 percent a decade ago, the first year the safety commission examined helmet use.

During the same period, overall bicycle use has declined about 21 percent as participation in in-line skating, skateboarding and other sports has increased, according to the National Sporting Goods Association, which conducts an annual survey of participation in different sports.

Even so, bicyclists suffered 73,750 head injuries last year, compared with 66,820 in 1991, according to the safety commission's national injury surveillance system, with the sharpest increase coming in the last three years.

Helmets may create a sort of daredevil effect, making cyclists feel so safe that they ride faster and take more chances, said Mayer Hillman, a senior fellow emeritus at the Policy Studies Institute in London. ''You would be well advised to wear a helmet provided you could persuade yourself it is of little use,'' Dr. Hillman said.

Insurance companies have long been familiar with the phenomenon, which they call moral hazard. Once someone is covered by an insurance policy there is a natural tendency for that person to take more risks.

One parallel, risk experts said, is anti-lock brakes. When they were introduced in the 1980's, they were supposed to reduce accidents, but government and industry studies in the mid-1990's showed that as drivers realized their brakes were more effective they started driving faster, and some accident rates rose.

''People tend to engage in risky behavior when they are protected,'' he said. ''It's a ubiquitous human trait.''

But the most effective way to reduce severe head injuries may be to decrease the number of accidents in the first place.

''Over the past several decades, society has come to equate safety with helmets,'' said Charles Komanoff, the co-founder of Right of Way, an organization that promotes the rights of cyclists and pedestrians. ''But wearing a helmet does not prevent crashes.''

Amen.

BIKER JUDGE CHASES FLEEING DRIVER

Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Robert ``Bud'' Ambrose was breaking in his new Harley-Davidson ''Deuce'' recently when he saw an odd sight a damaged car driving by with only three functioning tires.

Ambrose didn't realize the driver of that car was a suspect in a recent hit-and-run accident. But when the driver, a 52-year-old woman, pulled up behind some cars stopped at a red light, then looped around them into oncoming traffic, Ambrose felt he had to do something.

The judge-in-leathers revved his 2-week-old blue bike and chased the driver for several miles.

''I had to weave in and out of traffic, flashing my high beams to warn people about this woman,'' said the 56-year-old Ambrose. He pursued close behind as she raced through the streets of San Jose, California, weaving in and out of traffic at speeds from 30 to 60 mph.

The woman, who later told an officer she was on medication, collided with five drivers before and during the chase, according to the San Jose Mercury News. Two people were injured and a host of other drivers and pedestrians were sent scrambling for safety.

It all began shortly before noon on August 5th when a woman in a black 1997 Mitsubishi car struck another vehicle, injuring a 10 year old child who was celebrating his birthday. The boy had to be freed by rescuers. But the driver who hit them was nowhere to be found.

Six minutes later, another collision occurred involving the same driver. No one was hurt in that crash, but the driver, now with a flat tire, kept driving.

That's when Ambrose, heading home from a motorcycle shop, saw a damaged car pull up behind a line of cars stopped at a red light, pass them on the left side -- in the wrong lane -- and the chase was on.

But her car was hardly a match for Ambrose's Harley. The judge even stood on the bike's foot pegs, waving his arms and shouting at oncoming drivers to watch out. The car struck two more cars during the judges pursuit and then finally ran out of steam, mainly because the front fenders were so bent they locked up the rims.

Ambrose detained the driver until police arrived. The judge, who met his wife, Barbara, when he had one of his first Harley-Davidsons and who just celebrated his 26th wedding anniversary, said he had no choice but to get involved. ''In my court, I see a lot of hit-and-run victims. I see the impacts,'' Ambrose said.

Looking back, the former police officer knows he took some risks and wouldn't recommend it to those who do not have law-enforcement experience. ''At the time,'' he said, ''it was just instinct.''

STURGIS MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM HONORS
HALL OF FAMERS

On August 8, the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame hosted its first annual Induction Breakfast during Sturgis Bike Week to honor thirteen men and women who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001.

Among those who have contributed so much to our sport and lifestyle are three members of the National Coalition of Motorcyclists, including United States Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell and South Dakota State Senator Jim Putnam, who are both members of the NCOM Legislative Task Force, and Frank Ernst, a member of the NCOM Board of Directors and State Director of ABATE of Minnesota.

Other inductees are South Dakota Governor William Janklow, Jim Betlach, David Perewitz, Neil Hultman, Eddie Miller & family, Penny Walker, Tom Rudd, Woody Carson, Genevieve Schmitt and Indian Jeff.

The Sturgis Museum also announced that it will establish a permanent register in the Museum titled ''Outstanding Freedom Fighters of our Time.'' According to museum director Bob Illingworth, ''The mission of the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame is to preserve the great history of motorcycling and to honor the men and women who have made motorcycling what it is today. There is a group of people however that have been somewhat overlooked when the honors and accolades are handed out, and it is our goal to rectify this situation and recognize the contributions and sacrifices those outstanding individuals made in the course of protecting the rights and freedoms of motorcyclists everywhere.''

Procedures and rules for the Freedom Fighters Wall will be announced in the near future on the museums website, www.sturgismotorcyclemuseum.org

''SURVIVOR'' FINALIST GETS NEW HARLEY

Tina Wesson got her $1 million, Colby Donaldson is picking out a new Harley-Davidson motorcycle which Tina is buying for him and CBS has 36.4 million reasons to be thankful for the ''Survivor'' reality series. Thats how many people tuned in for the final episode of the Outback ''Survivor'', according to Nielsen Media Research.

Wesson, a 40-year-old nurse from Knoxville, Tennessee, won the big prize by being the ultimate survivor, but had secretly made a prior arrangement with Colby that whoever won would buy the other a motorcycle. In addition to the new scoot, the 39-year-old Texan also won $100,000 and a sport utility vehicle for winning the final reward challenge.

MAN STABBED TO PREVENT DRUNK RIDING

A Georgia man took the ''Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk'' credo a bit too far recently when he reportedly stabbed his drunken friend in the back to stop him from riding home on his motorcycle.

Aiken County sheriffs in Aiken County, Georgia, say Benjamin Sharpe will be charged with assault and battery with intent to kill.

Officers say the 47-year-old told them he didn't want his friend to ride his motorcycle while under the influence.

Robert Wheeler, 39, is recovering in the Medical College of Georgia Hospital, reports the Augusta Chronicle.

QUOTABLE QUOTES: ''The establishment is made up of little men, very frightened.'' Lawyer, Former Congresswoman Bella Abzug