BIKER NE
man claims
discrimination
in helmet law
bY: bILL bISH, ncom
THE AIM/NCOM MOTORCYCLE E-NEWS SERVICE is brought
to you by Aid to Injured Motorcyclists (A.I.M.) and the
National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM), and is
sponsored by the Law Offices of Richard M. Lester. If you’ve
been involved in any kind of accident, call us at
1-(800) ON-A-BIKE or visit www.ON-A-BIKE.com.
U.S. SENATE TAKES A STAND AGAINST POLICE
PROFILING OF MOTORCYCLISTS
The United States Senate has approved the
Motorcycle Profiling Resolution (Senate Resolution 154)
without amendment by unanimous consent on Dec 11,
addressing concerns of motorcyclists across the country
regarding law enforcement discriminating against bikers
in traffic stops, citations and arrests.
This bipartisan and bicameral resolution (H.Res.
318 companion in the House) could provide a national
solution to the discriminatory profiling of motorcyclists
over mode of transportation or style of dress in enforcing
the law. Several states have considered bills to prohibit
police from profiling motorcyclists, and Washington
became the first state to pass such an anti-profiling law
in 2011, followed by Maryland in 2016.
The two companion measures in the U.S. Senate
and House of Representatives, which are nonbinding
and do not have the force of law, seek to curb profiling
of motorcycle riders at the federal level by “Promoting
awareness of motorcycle profiling and encouraging
collaboration and communication with the motorcycle
community and law enforcement officials to prevent
instances of profiling.”
S.Res. 154 and H.Res. 318 also “urges State law
enforcement officials to include statements condemning
motorcycle profiling in written policies and training
materials.”
U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) spearheaded the
measure in the Senate, and recently tweeted; “Pleased
the Senate passed S.Res. 154 to encourage states to
take steps to prevent profiling of #motorcycle riders.
Hopefully this will lead to more efforts to raise awareness
of and address motorcycle profiling.”
As defined by the Congressional resolutions,
“motorcycle profiling” means “the illegal use of the fact
that a person rides a motorcycle or wears motorcycle
related apparel as a factor in deciding to stop and
question, take enforcement action, arrest, or search a
person or vehicle with or without legal basis under the
Constitution of the United States.”
Concerned riders are now urged to contact their
Congressional delegations in the U.S. House of
Representatives and encourage them to join their Senate
colleagues by likewise passing House Resolution 318.
GOVERNMENT WINS FIRST ROUND IN TRIAL TO
SEIZE MONGOLS PATCH
For over a decade, federal law enforcement authorities
have been testing a unique legal tactic to take down the
Mongols Motorcycle Club by seizing their trademarked
logo under asset forfeiture laws, and now a federal jury
in Santa Ana, California has found the Mongols guilty
of racketeering and conspiracy, setting up a second
phase of the trial during which the government will
seek to seize control of the club’s “intellectual property”
and thereby ban members from wearing their unifying
“colors” or patches.
Federal prosecutors will ask the judge to fine the
Mongol Nation -- the West Covina, CA entity that legally
owns the club trademark -- and order it to forfeit rights
to the identifying logo worn on the bikers’ vests.
Since the case is focused on the Mongols organization,
no specific individuals are facing jail or prison time, but
the government’s attempt to defrock club members
is aimed at dismantling the club by destroying their
identity and thus its allure.
During the five-week trial that ended Thursday,
December 13, 2018 prosecutors testified that the
Mongols were a violent criminal enterprise. According
to the Associated Press, in finding the Mongols guilty
of racketeering, jurors decided that the motorcycle club
itself is a criminal organization.
The Mongols have denied that they are a criminal
enterprise, arguing that the organization itself isn’t
responsible for crimes committed by individual members
or in self-defense.
Defense attorney Joseph A. Yanny argued that
individual club members may have committed criminal
acts but the club is blameless and kicks out members
under a “zero-tolerance” policy for such activity.
“They won the battle, but they did not win the
war,” said David Santillan, the current president of the
Mongols, said of the government after the jury verdict.
In 2008, dozens of members were charged with
racketeering based on an investigation in which agents
from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives infiltrated the club, and a judge ruled that
they should forfeit the Mongols trademark but later
reversed the decision. The new case was filed in 2013,
and it was thrown out two years later by U.S. District
30 Thunder Roads Magazine LA/MS Gulf Coast | January 2019 | www.thunderroadslams.com
Judge David O. Carter, but he was overruled on appeal.
Now, the same jury will return to court Jan. 8, as
the focus of the trial shifts to potential seizures from
the Mongols. Judge Carter, who is presiding over the
trial, will make the final ruling on exactly what will be
seized. If the judge ultimately approves the seizure of
the trademark, he would also determine exactly what
the government could do with it, including whether they
could literally take the Mongols jackets off members’
backs.
Motorcycle clubs across the country are watching this
test case closely. “They take our patch,” Santillan told
the New York Times, “and then they take all the clubs’
patches.”
NCOM CONVENTION TO ADDRESS BIKERS’ RIGHTS
ISSUES
Topics such as Motorcycle Profiling and “Save the
Patch” will be among the many issues of concern to our
nation’s motorcycle community that will be addressed
during the upcoming 34th annual NCOM Convention,
to be held Mother’s Day weekend, May 10-12, 2019 at
the DoubleTree by Hilton in Orlando, Florida. Hundreds
of bikers’ rights activists from the ranks of motorcycle
rights organizations (MROs) and Confederations of Clubs
(COCs), as well as independents and other allied riders
will gather to discuss the concerns of all riders.
Agenda items will cover various legal and legislative
issues, with Special Meetings for Veterans Affairs,
Women in Motorcycling, Clean & Sober Roundtable
and World of Sport Bikes, as well as the Christian Unity
Conference and Confederation of Clubs Patch Holders
Meeting. Additional seminars will be conducted
regarding Restoration of Rights, Leadership 101 and
“Share the Road” Motorcycle Safety.
All motorcyclists are welcome, and to pre-register
for the 2019 NCOM Convention contact the National
Coalition of Motorcyclists at (800) ON-A-BIKE or visit
www.ON-A-BIKE.com.
CELL PHONE BANS ARE SAVING MOTORCYCLISTS’
LIVES
Laws to ban or curb drivers’ use of cell phones and
other handheld devices have greatly reduced the rate of
fatalities for motorcyclists, according to a new study by
faculty at Florida Atlantic University and the University of
Miami. The study’s findings, recently published in Social
Science & Medicine, show that states with moderate to
strong bans have motorcycle fatality rates that differ by
as much as 11% compared to states with no bans.
The study originally intended to focus on overall
traffic fatality rates involving cell phone use while
driving. When it comes to car vs. car crashes, it’s not clear