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BRAZEN drivers could have their vehicles permanently seized over a dangerous and reckless act that has terrorized residents in one California neighborhood.
A final vote is scheduled for October 1 as lawmakers in San Francisco look to end notorious sideshows from taking over city streets with daredevil stunts.
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Officials say dozens of drivers participate in illegal sideshows, where participants and spectators gathered on streets across San Francisco, performing unsafe and destructive tricks with cars and dirt bikes.
The organizers unlawfully block roadways or perform the acts on private property.
Furious residents would take matters into their own hands, placing tires on streets and installing custom speed bumps to prevent the outrageous antics.
“Doing acrobatics on their bikes and looking like they might fall off and kill themselves, and they’re just going past the house,” local Molly Tello told CBS News.
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Tello said the preps, sometimes more than 100 people, gather almost every weekend and take over her neighborhood.
She said the drivers race down streets at breakneck speed and blow past traffic lights.
Now, lawmakers will look to pass new legislation to try and curb the stunts.
The new law will make participating and promoting sideshows illegal.
Vehicles seized during sideshows could also be impounded for more than 30 days if the district attorney decides to file charges.
The car could be permanently seized if the person is convicted.
“With the passage of this legislation, we are making it clear that illegal sideshows will not be tolerated in San Francisco,” Matt Dorsey, a member of the city’s board of supervisors, told CBS News.
The latest effort came days after California Governor Gavin Newsom signed four separate bills aimed at halting illegal sideshows in the state.
The new laws will impose stricter penalties, increase accountability, and strengthen what police can do when they respond to illegal sideshows.
“Sideshows are reckless, criminal activities that endanger our communities,” Newsom’s office said in a statement on Monday.
“We have seen too many people killed or hurt at these events. Today, we are sending a clear message to anyone considering participating in or attending a sideshow: stricter penalties are in place, including the potential loss of your vehicle.”
Still, some residents are not too optimistic about the new restrictions.
“I think it just moves from one street to another, most of the time,” Juliet Mariniello told the outlet.
“Like, I’ve seen it in Oakland, where they’ve tried to outlaw sideshows, and they moved to another corner.
“They moved to another block. I hope it works.”
Tello is hopeful police will tackle the participants on dirt bikes before they confront drivers.
“The people who are actually participating in them on the bikes that need to be stopped before they get started,” she added.
Police have begun using high-end technology to catch offenders, including drones and license plate readers.
Under San Francisco’s new law, all charges would be considered misdemeanors.
When does the new law go into effect?
A new law championed by San Frnacisco Mayor London Breed and the city’s Board of Supervisors is set to go toward a final vote.
On October 1, San Francisco lawmakers are expected to vote on a new legislation to combat illegal sideshows.
What are sideshows?
- Sideshows are illegal gatherings of drivers, dirt bikers, and spectators who illegally shut down city streets to perform dangerous and potentially life-threatening stunts.
- The meet-ups are promoted on social media, and hundreds gather to witness the illegal driving antics, which include tire burnouts, dirt bike wheelies, and dangerous speeding.
What will the new law impose?
- The new legislation will make it illegal to participate in or promote sideshows.
- Blocking or obstructing streets to set up sideshows and disrupting police from stopping the event will also be illegal.
- Cars seized during a sideshow could be impounded for more than 30 days if the district attorney decides to file charges.
- The vehicle could also be permanently seized if the person is convicted.
- The charges will all be considered misdemeanors in San Francisco.
