The Dangers Of Illegal Street Racing – In 2022 In October, a Florida law was passed to reduce the dangerous number of street racing incidents on Florida roads.
Florida Statute Section 316.191 prohibits street and highway racing, street hijacking, and trick driving as defined in the statute. Unsanctioned drag racing, street takeovers, drifting, laps, burnouts and donuts are prohibited by law.
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Cars, trucks, motorcycles, ATVs, and other wheeled vehicles are prohibited from participating in any “street takeover, stunt driving, racing, speed contest or contest, drag race or acceleration contest, test of physical endurance, or exhibition of speed or acceleration on a highway. , driveway or parking lot.
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This criminal activity, which endangers the general public and prevents law enforcement and first responders from assisting in real emergencies and emergencies, will not be tolerated.
Both drivers and passengers, all persons in the vehicle, filming participants, organizers and organizers can be charged with first-degree misdemeanors.
The person behind the vehicle cannot be a spectator in street racing or street interceptions. The violation is a noncriminal offense punishable under Florida Statutes Section 318.14, which includes civil penalties.
Rough estimates of towing fees in Broward, Miami-Dade and Hillsborough counties with a lot of street racing show that another $300 to $1,600 in towing/impound fees* can easily be added to the financial penalties incurred for illegal racing on the street.
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*Disclaimer: Each county in Florida sets its own towing/closure rates. These financial ranges are approximate only, and amounts may vary based on case-by-case details, vehicle weight and length, time spent at crime scene, daily rate of custody inside and outside, time spent in arrest, etc.
Bottom Line: A motor vehicle is many people’s lifeline for getting to and from work, getting their kids to and from school, and completing the daily tasks of life. Don’t let illegal street racing become a mistake you can’t recover from. Copyright © 2024 Los Angeles Times | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | CA Notice of Collection | Do not sell or share my personal information
August 14 a car drifts around spectators during an early morning street takeover at Compton Boulevard and Atlantic Avenue.
Cindy and Dora didn’t know where they were going on a recent Saturday night, but they knew they were going to a “show.”
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Around 11 p.m. Cindy texted a friend in Compton but didn’t get an immediate response. She and Dora grabbed tacos from the stand and waited. About 40 minutes later, the women, who did not want to be identified by last name, got their answer: East Compton Boulevard and Atlantic Avenue.
A little after midnight, nearly 200 people blocked the streets in what has become a weekly ritual in the city. Two cars were driving at the intersection, burning tires and worn brake pads sending thick smoke into the air.
Illegal street takeovers, or sideshows, have been a part of urban Southern California culture for years. They often span multiple roads, with crowds of onlookers blocking intersections to watch drivers speed by – sometimes dispersing as vehicles plow into the crowd.
After that, the roads are littered with glistening shards of broken glass, and the asphalt is tattooed with black tire marks.
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Crowds watch as cars circle the street in East Compton. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)
But some neighborhoods have seen a growing backlash, with residents demanding more action from authorities to crack down on illegal gatherings that can quickly turn deadly.
At least six people have died on or near the streets in the past eight months. In November, two men were shot and killed in a car parked near a pickup in Compton. In June, two women were killed in a crash near a Compton event. A man in his 20s was fatally shot by authorities in the Vermont Vista neighborhood over the Fourth of July weekend. And on August 14 a teenager was shot by authorities in Willowbrook.
Tire smoke and the sound of revving engines fill the early morning air during the takeover of East Compton Street.
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Hijackings have grown in popularity since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when city streets were short of drivers during lockdowns. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, in the first six months of 2021 500 sideshows were reported in Los Angeles for months. During the same period this year, the LAPD reported 705 interceptions. No data on the interceptions was available from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
“It’s like a war zone,” said former Compton Councilwoman Barbara Calhoun. The perfectly painted white crosswalks at the major intersections near her home are a tangle of black tracks.
Those who live in or near Compton say street racing and takeovers have polluted the city; the topic has become a recurring point of discussion during council meetings, with residents like David Castillo pleading for action.
Castillo and his family were driving home from Walmart in March when they were hit by a green Ford Mustang making donuts near Wilmington Avenue and Stockwell Street.
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Castillo said his truck was wrecked and his 13-year-old daughter hit her head on the window, dislocating a disc in her spine.
Now, every time Castillo, 39, and his family drive through that intersection, his younger daughter asks, “Are we going to get hit?”
From the corner of the blocked East Compton intersection, Steven threw his hands in the air as the battered Mustang sped into the crowd and revved its engine. “I used to drive and now I just like to watch,” said the 24-year-old. “That’s where he is.”
Like Cindy and Dora, Steven and his friend Peter, 31, did not want to reveal their surnames when they joined the midnight crowd.
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“Sometimes people are stupid. They are fighting. Stupid, said Peter. “[But] nobody hurts you, so don’t hurt them.
Calhoun feels the police have stopped trying to control the problem. When she calls the Sheriff’s Department to report a break-in near her home, she said, several patrol cars with cruiser lights flashing usually respond.
Representatives of the California Highway Patrol, Sheriff’s Department and LAPD say they lack the personnel to safely stop the show’s ongoing performances. Large crowds can easily turn hostile, and coordinated responses to street hijackings have failed to contain the incidents, law enforcement officials say.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies arrive at the scene of an early morning street standoff at Compton Boulevard and Atlantic Avenue in East Compton.
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“If you really have two patrol cars, you can’t do anything with 200 other cars on the runway,” said sheriff’s Sgt. Michael Downing said. “We were attacked by officers. We ran into patrol cars. People were hit by cars while leaving our place.
While law enforcement agencies are coordinating among themselves on street racing and pick-up calls, the general consensus is that the problem is getting worse.
Police say there is also an increasing criminal element to the interception, with officers finding weapons and drugs on people in their custody.
August 15 early in the morning, a group of people from the street takeover police described as a “flash mob” stormed a 7-Eleven in Willowbrook. LAPD officials said they grabbed food, drinks, cigarettes and lottery tickets.
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Cars drift around spectators gathered in the middle of the intersection during the early morning takeover of East Compton Street.
Compton Mayor Emma Sharif said street occupations are a major concern for the city and she is committed to working with law enforcement to address the issue. For example, she said, the city has added cameras at intersections where takeovers are common. Small ceramic bumps called Botts points have recently been installed at four intersections to deter hijacking.
“We’re just trying to make sure we’re taking care of our citizens and we’ve made sure we’ve covered all our bases when it comes to dealing with this issue,” Sharif said.
Most takeovers are organized through social media posts, especially Instagram. Invitations are often simple comment threads under posts with vague information, but that’s enough to let those involved know where to meet.
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The Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office is considering whether to face penalties and fines for people who share invitations online.
To fight fire with fire, the LAPD also got involved in social media, creating the @street_racer_task_force Instagram account, which is run by the department’s Central and South Traffic Divisions. Since 2016 the page has amassed nearly 30,000 followers and posts about impounded vehicles and arrests.
The LAPD’s account shared videos of drivers performing stunts such as “swinging” — where a driver passes a car on narrow wheels — or losing control of their vehicles and plowing into crowds lining the street. The drives are followed by photos of the same cars being towed on the back of a flatbed truck.
The comment section has gained its own buzz. Commentators often talk about “buckets” being pulled over by police or cruiser sports, as well as the notoriety associated with an ad on the police channel.
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May 22, on the department’s Instagram account