Arlington, Texas to adopt Zero Tolerance on Motorcycle riders-to include confiscation

 By NATHANIEL JONES njones@star-telegram.com
It’s all fun and games until somebody gets hurt. Or even killed.

David Slider, 22, who enjoyed riding his motorcycle faster than 100 mph, got lucky. While racing a car one morning in July 2007, Slider ran into the back of a pickup hauling windshields. He broke several bones and ruptured one of his vocal cords.

Slider was one of more than 130 motorcyclists who crashed their bikes in Arlington last year. Seven of them died; a helmet and a little luck likely saved Slider from being the eighth.

Slider attended the launch of Arlington’s SMART campaign — Safety Equipment, Motorcycle License, Awareness, Responsibility and Traffic Laws — on Monday at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

Under the zero-tolerance campaign, officers will write more tickets to reckless motorcycle riders.

"We’re out here to let motorcyclists know that we are serious," said Chris Holder, a traffic officer with the Arlington Police Department. "We can go from writing multiple tickets to confiscating bikes if the situation deems necessary."

Motorcycle fatalities in Texas have increased 73 percent, from 229 in 2000 to 397 in 2007.
Arlington’s seven motorcycle fatalities in 2007 more than doubled the city’s total the previous year.

"Whenever I see a motorcyclist cut in and out of traffic, it just sends chills down my back," Slider said. "They aren’t thinking about the consequences."

AND ANOTHER AMERICAN CITY DECLARES THE U.S. CONSTITUTION NULL AN VOID.
DO THEY CONFISCATE AUTO'S FOR RECKLESS DRIVING?  FINES, YES!  CONFISCATION, NO!!!Add to Technorati Favorites