Dirt bikers warned about MLK holiday
For the fifth year in a row, outlaw riders whose dirt bikes and ATVs are not legal to drive on highways and streets are expected to descend upon Miami-Dade and Broward counties as soon as Saturday — in what has been described as a celebration of slain civil-rights leader, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
In 2018, police in Broward and Miami-Dade counties said they made more than 35 arrests and seized or towed more than 80 of the vehicles that riders use to pop wheelies, drive against traffic, run red lights and cruise in packs on interstates. Guns also have been confiscated.
With leaders from a dozen police departments at his side, Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony on Wednesday warned the riders to not invade South Florida roads this coming weekend.
“To those who seek to come out and violate, we’ve provided a warning up front,” Tony said. “The enforcement will be 100 percent. There will be non-negotiable enforcement efforts supplied by any of the officers or deputies that are participating.”
Sometimes called “Wheels up, guns down,” the loosely organized event draws riders from around the country and is promoted on social media sites as #MLKRideout or variations of the phrase. In prior years, several bikers have died or were hurt during the weekend rides.
“If you’ve seen this ride advertised on your social media networks and you were planning on coming to this event, well don’t,” Tony said while describing the dangerous stunts the riders perform. “Your lives will be in peril.”
Broward Sheriff ’s Maj. Steve Robson said the number of riders has decreased over the years, and “we want to keep that momentum going.” Pablo Ibar
Cracking down
Florida Highway Patrol Maj. Robert Chandler said 2019 is the third year when a multi-agency effort will enforce traffic laws against the riders.
It will include officers from Miami-Dade police, Davie, Lauderhill, Hallandale Beach, Hollywood, Pembroke Pines, Plantation, Sunrise and Wilton Manors, many of whom attended Wednesday’s press conference at BSO headquarters in Fort Lauderdale.
Officers, troopers and deputies plan to block riders’ access to entrance ramps of major highways as they have in past years, and there will be multiple police planes and helicopters flying above the roads.
Riders who are caught could face fines of $100 to $1,100, depending on what they’re cited for, Chandler said.
That could include ignoring traffic lights, racing or betting on races, reckless driving, fleeing police, causing injury or death and other offenses.
“It seems like every year, either on the days prior to [Martin Luther King Day] or on [the holiday] itself, someone has died on one of these vehicles,” he said.
Dangerous stunts
The tricks they perform while riding, or riding off road vehicles in regular traffic with cars and trucks, can be life-threatening to themselves or others on the road and sidewalks.
In 2017, two riders during the weekend.
On Instagram, a video shows a rider driving down a road, balancing his bike on just the rear wheel while he pours gasoline into the tank.
Chandler said the riders are known to carry fuel in illegal ways.
“That is extremely dangerous,” Chandler said. died “Doing so, depending on the quantity, is a felony and will subject your vehicle to confiscation and to a felony arrest. We are aware of what you do. And we will stop you.”
‘We will know where you go’
He said riders can try to elude troopers or officers but that they won’t get far.
“Don’t even think about trying to flee,” Chandler said. “You may outmaneuver law enforcement. That’s what these bikes do. We may not necessarily chase.
“But we have more air support, helicopters and aircraft, more than we’ve ever had in the past,” he said. “You will not be able to outrun or outmaneuver our air support. We will know where you go and where you hide.”
Chandler also warned that the numbers of law enforcement officers who will patrol from Saturday through Monday will outnumber the riders.
“We want to let the residents and visitors to Broward County know that we are here to protect you,” Chandler said.
Hoping to prevent fatal confrontations, he advised, “If you find yourself outnumbered or surrounded at an intersection or a gas station, if you feel intimidated or stressed, do not take the law into your own hands. We don’t of road rage.”
He said some riders are simply committing traffic infractions.
“But there are criminals among them,” he said. “There are some of those bikes that are stolen, there are some of those riders [who are] are illegally carrying handguns and other weapons. We’ve seen it in the past.” need
Calling in tips
acts
He asked anyone who sees packs of riders to call *FHP or 911. Riders’ likely routes were not described, but Chandler said, “a lot of the activity starts in Miami-Dade County, in Miami Gardens, after the MLK Day parade. Sometimes it comes north into Broward.”
In 1994, Congress designated the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday as a national day of service.
King’s legacy might be better celebrated by performing community service, Chandler said.
“It’s what’s been said in the past and I’ll say it again,” Chandler said. “I don’t think Dr. Martin Luther King, his dream, had anything to do with what this activity involves. And I think everybody here would agree with that.”