The $22k Joyride

In todays papers

OTTAWA — Police say a pair of Ottawa motorcyclists went on a reckless high-speed ride on a Quebec highway Saturday and filmed their actions, which helped officers hit them with 229 demerit points and $22,236 in fines.

“That's the highest we've ever had," Const. Martin Fournel said of the fines.

Officers arrested the two men, ages 29 and 26, almost right in front of the police station near Wakefield, Que., located north of Gatineau.

Police had received complaints about bikers making illegal passes.

Police said one of the bikers tried to hide a video camera, but officers seized it and watched its contents. The footage not only confirmed eyewitness accounts, police say, but helped investigators see several dozen other infractions from the same ride.
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Time to hide the Ghost HD cam the next time I ride ..

Snivly in Montreal

Nice one. One of the reasons mine is for off-road duty only.


Sent on the go using Windows Phone

That's uncalled for.

I thought Oregon was bad when they act like you just raped their wife, kicked their dog and burned their house down just because you crossed some mythical threshold into triple digits... And they only make you pay $3200.00 with an automatic impound and six month suspension.

Oh my God! Illegal passes, they should get the death penalty! The scoundrels! May they die a slow death and rot in hell.

You can't let them get away with this, or next thing you know, this will lead to bigger things, like Lane-Splitting aghast!

You Canadians crack me up, and I thought Florida was bad, sheesh!

Isn't the highest set speed limit in that area like, 100? (60 MPH)

Wonder if Quebec or anywhere in Canada have issues with packs of Idiots like in NY and St Louis? With this kind of deterrent I doubt it I think our Brothers in the North may be on to something.

I think the overzealous , Nazi cops need to stay in Canada , ours are bad enough. I'm not saying ours do their jobs well , but they're too misguided as it is. We don't need more laws , we need non-biased , uninfluenced , unopinionated cops willing to do their jobs honestly all of the time whether they feel like it or not.

No we don't have those problems... and the 22k is from the duration of the video where the nuts broke dozens of infractions of various penalties and fines.

I think this is a good thing and 22k in fines is probably a pretty good deterrent.

I don't really think it's a good deterrent. People will lose their licenses because they can't pay the rediculous fines and STILL drive out of necessity.

Buy a cheap bike like an old beater SV1000. If the cops chase you run like hell, you've got nothing to lose. If they catch you let them have the bike, then buy another and repeat. Forget paying the fines. It cost money to lock you up.

Here is a quote from a Dallas News article on a bill they are now trying to repeal here.

http://www.texastribune.org/2012/11/15/texas-doctors-decry-use-ems-fund-balance-budget/



It turns out that the program’s most spectacular achievement is the mass revocation of driver’s licenses of the 1.3 million Texans who couldn’t or wouldn’t keep up with add-on payments amounting to thousands of dollars in some cases. In all, 60 percent of drivers have fallen into arrears on the surcharges, to the tune of a combined $1.7 billion past-due bill to the state.
Now they make up a new class of unlicensed and mostly uninsurable drivers. Turner reckons that many are breaking the law to drive, if that’s what it takes to hold down a job to pay off a surcharge. What a sad irony.
Gonzales points out that uninsurable drivers have pushed up the cost of insurance for the rest of us who pay a total $1 billion a year for protection from those without coverage.



What do we do now? Throw 1.3 million people in jail?

Some beurocrat will decide they just aren't fining the perpetrators enough.

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So if they are speeding for say 100 km or so....do they only get 1 speeding ticket? Or do they get a speeding ticket every time they pass a speed limit sign?

Wheelies and triple digit speeds don't happen by mistake, motorcycles are a bad choice for those who lack self control.

About a year ago, there was a bit of a similar case in my country. 2-3 idiots had taped their idiotic riding on the roads, and planned to make a DVD for sale. Then they gave a hint of this to some journalist, as they thought it would be a cool way to get some free advertisement for their project. Instead they got the police visit their homes, and their bikes, cameras, computers impounded, their assets freezed, and they were prosecuted.

Put simply: If you go on public roads, and you do illegal stuff there, and you videotape it all AND make it public, and even plan to make money by selling a product containing this illegal stuff, WHAT do you expect will happen next?

It´s as if these asshats have not yet realized, that they are now over 18 years of age, and momma and papa will no longer be responsible for their stupidity, instead they are now themselves responsible.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/wayoflife/03/04/aa.speeding.ticket/

From the CNN Article:

"Varying ticket penalties

Penalties vary across states and jurisdictions. In California, for example, a first offender likely will face a fine not exceeding $500, two points on a license and possible jail time. The infraction becomes a misdemeanor if the police can prove a driver was reckless. In Virginia it's a fine of up to $2,500 and mandatory jail time.

Some states like Florida and New York use a sliding scale for speeds up to 50 mph over the limit."

*** Note *** "Many including Oregon enforce mandatory license suspensions.

Reckless driving?

Whether an infraction becomes a reckless driving offense depends on road conditions, how you were driving, the officer serving your ticket and the state in which you received it. Factors include if you were seen making unsafe lane changes or had a passenger in your car (even more so if it's a child). Reckless driving is usually a misdemeanor criminal offense. In Florida, a third offense for driving 50 mph over the limit is a felony. In Virginia, driving above 85 mph is considered reckless.

The numbers

100 mph citations, case study: Oregon, 2006-2007. Source: Oregon.gov

• 79% of the cited drivers were male.

• 81% of the citations were issued to drivers on freeways, and 19% were issued on secondary state highways.

• The highest percentage age group for male drivers was 20-24 (34%) followed by age group 15-19 (21%).

• For all violators cited, 51% involved drivers ages 15-24.

• In 2005, troopers cited 464 people for driving 100 mph or faster Between 2000 and 2004, troopers cited more the 2,600 drivers."

Is'nt this a bit OTT, nearly 23k fines for what is in fact traffic offences, I mean they've been caught bang to rights but lets keep things in perspective here, sounds like a great way to make money for the local council. We have seen similar things in the past with local councils lifting cars that where parked illegally like they where going out of fashion and demanding huge fee's for getting them back , only to find that people just stopped paying them as it was obvious that it was just a money making scheme, when it came time to go to court the judges just binned the cases and ordered that the practice was illegal.

That is two weeks in jail in New Jersey, and I've watched the judge hand out three or four in a day.


...plus all of the fines and shit.

Just what would you think would be a 'good deterrent'? A stern lecture? A wag of the forefinger?

Just because you can't pay the fine doesn't give you a pass. The court will often arrange for installments. If you can't do the time....and especially if you're stupid enough to hang yourself with a new rope.