Glad to know that our tax money is being put to good use
04-03-2008, 08:07 PM
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Glad to know that our tax money is being put to good use
California: Police Raid Car Enthusiast Gathering, Generate Revenue
Police raid Riverside, California parking lot to issue modified car tickets at local car enthusiast gathering.
Parking lot raidUsing $503,000 in federal and state gas tax revenue to pay for overtime, nine police agencies in Riverside, California sent more than one hundred police officers to surround a gathering of automotive enthusiasts. Owners of imported sport compact cars had gathered at the Canyon Crossing shopping center on Friday night to swap stories, talk about their passion for cars and show off the latest enhancements to their rides. At around 11pm police surprised participants by blocking all exits with fifty police cruisers. Officers then began a warrantless search and interrogation operation of the 150 vehicles that were present.
"If you're not into street racing, why would you need that?" Riverside Police Traffic Sergeant Skip Showalter asked an enthusiast during a similar crackdown last year. "Why would you want more power going to your car?"
Police issued a total of forty-eight tickets for "engine modifications" with police accusing the owners of the parked vehicles of being street racers. Another fifty tickets were issued for paperwork violations, dark window tinting and lack of a front license plate. The most revenue, however, will be generated from the fees imposed on twenty vehicles that were confiscated. Despite labeling the parking lot raid as taking place at a "street racing venue," Riverside Police offered no evidence that any street racing actually took place.
Across the state, gas tax funds are regularly used to fund similar crackdowns that generate big revenue. In 2004, the California Highway Patrol issued a total of 101,553 "modified car" citations worth $10.5 million according to CHP data obtained by TheNewspaper.
Other law enforcement agencies participating in Friday night's raid included the California Highway Patrol, Riverside County Sheriff's Department, and police from Baldwin Park, Fontana, Irwindale, Moreno Valley, Ontario and Mount San Jacinto Community College.
Police raid Riverside, California parking lot to issue modified car tickets at local car enthusiast gathering.
Parking lot raidUsing $503,000 in federal and state gas tax revenue to pay for overtime, nine police agencies in Riverside, California sent more than one hundred police officers to surround a gathering of automotive enthusiasts. Owners of imported sport compact cars had gathered at the Canyon Crossing shopping center on Friday night to swap stories, talk about their passion for cars and show off the latest enhancements to their rides. At around 11pm police surprised participants by blocking all exits with fifty police cruisers. Officers then began a warrantless search and interrogation operation of the 150 vehicles that were present.
"If you're not into street racing, why would you need that?" Riverside Police Traffic Sergeant Skip Showalter asked an enthusiast during a similar crackdown last year. "Why would you want more power going to your car?"
Police issued a total of forty-eight tickets for "engine modifications" with police accusing the owners of the parked vehicles of being street racers. Another fifty tickets were issued for paperwork violations, dark window tinting and lack of a front license plate. The most revenue, however, will be generated from the fees imposed on twenty vehicles that were confiscated. Despite labeling the parking lot raid as taking place at a "street racing venue," Riverside Police offered no evidence that any street racing actually took place.
Across the state, gas tax funds are regularly used to fund similar crackdowns that generate big revenue. In 2004, the California Highway Patrol issued a total of 101,553 "modified car" citations worth $10.5 million according to CHP data obtained by TheNewspaper.
Other law enforcement agencies participating in Friday night's raid included the California Highway Patrol, Riverside County Sheriff's Department, and police from Baldwin Park, Fontana, Irwindale, Moreno Valley, Ontario and Mount San Jacinto Community College.
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04-03-2008, 08:59 PM
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thats some ****ing gay *** bull****.
""If you're not into street racing, why would you need that?" Riverside Police Traffic Sergeant Skip Showalter asked an enthusiast during a similar crackdown last year. "Why would you want more power going to your car?""
Sounds like this man doesn't even have a pair. Honestly...you do it go faster or provide better handling...why not? Like he hasn't ever modified a car in his life.
This is seriously some of the biggest BS I've seen and is useless IMO. Go concentrate on REAL criminals like rapists, murderers, drug distributors, etc. rather than on people hanging out and not breaking the law.
""If you're not into street racing, why would you need that?" Riverside Police Traffic Sergeant Skip Showalter asked an enthusiast during a similar crackdown last year. "Why would you want more power going to your car?""
Sounds like this man doesn't even have a pair. Honestly...you do it go faster or provide better handling...why not? Like he hasn't ever modified a car in his life.
This is seriously some of the biggest BS I've seen and is useless IMO. Go concentrate on REAL criminals like rapists, murderers, drug distributors, etc. rather than on people hanging out and not breaking the law.
04-03-2008, 09:01 PM
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why wouldnt you want your car to go faster? and i also want it to stop faster by getting bigger brakes. and i want it to look better, and all that stuff. why wouldnt you want to make your car better. dumb *** questions. i would get so pissed off if that happens at one of our meets. i would just go to court for it.
04-03-2008, 09:06 PM
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I didn't know driving a nice car was a crime. Any legal experts here? Is this legal? I am all for deterring of street racers, but when you punish an innocent person, that just goes too far.
04-03-2008, 09:19 PM
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Domestics or Imports it doesn't matter. What matters is what the task they performed and how seriously silly it was to waste that kind of money on something soooo stupid. Especially in the areas they patrol in they should focus on much bigger worries than people getting together with their cars and not street racing. Bunch of ****ing tossers.
04-03-2008, 10:49 PM
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They did that **** in Salinas a few years back, ****en sucked. We went to go get food, and someone called us to tell us that they blocked them in and were giving everyone a loitering ticket since the stores around them were closed.
