SEMA should take note of this.

[70 copo]

Under this trap My Import would have been confiscated.

Good thing Lillard was not there with the FINAL OBJECTIVE.

http://thenewspaper.com/news/23/2302.asp

[GRB]

Govt. 'out of control' at it's finest. So just because you have a certain mod on your car the govt. can assume you are street racing and issue a ticket. Nice. What's next. Home searches for too many knives, guns, sex toys, junk food, pre-ban toilets or whatever.

We were given a republic, a free nation, but we couldn't keep it. I pity our children.

[427TJ]

Warrantless searches and wire-tapping cruised through the congress (Patriot Act, among other bills) after 9/11 with barely any complaint. Those who did complain were accused of being unpatriotic. You're right GRB, we were given a democracy and we'll gladly give it up. Just keep me "safe" and keep my car's gas tank and my fridge full. Oh, and batteries in my remote!

Cops have been busting car guys like those in Riverside for as long as car guys have been congregating in parking lots or anywhere else. The decent citizens of Riverside want illegal street racing stopped so the cops sweep in and bust them in the parking lot. I had the same thing happen in 1983 when about twenty of us were parked along our remote drag strip in Pinole CA. The cops arrived and issued parking tickets (too far from curb) and fix-it tickets (my '67 Camaro had no front bumper or plate). We drove away and then went back the next week and raced again. Same thing happening in Riverside. The street racers get out of hand, the cops crack down, the street racers cool it for a short time and then go back to street racing and the cycle continues.

I should add that in 1983 we were a bunch of dirty white boys who respected the police even if we didn't like being hassled by them. We knew we were racing illegaly but we tried to keep it safe and not get out of control. The residents who lived along that road would sometimes stand in their yards and watch but not often. I can assume that in Riversde there is a racially/ethnically/culturally diverse aspect to the street racing scene and therefore the crackdown has a "racist cop" element to it that didn't exist in my case 25-30 years ago. Never the less, crackdowns on illegal street racing will continue untl the last drop of gas is converted to exhaust.

[Mr. Chevy]

If you ask me these knuckleheads brought all of this upon themselves. The only reason the Police had this "sting operation/detail" or whatever you want to call it is because of the out of control behavior of these idiots street racing these cars and the traffic related deaths that have been associated with them. There is a specific reason that all of these Police agencies were involved and I can guarantee it was not to just go out one night and screw with these people. I'm sure they received numerous complaints from citizens regarding the behavior.

I'm certain it's not everyday that the police swarm into car cruises and conduct searches and tow vehicles.. Here in Ohio we had a weekly Saturday Night cruise inn that started out very nice. It was a collection of musclecars and enthusiasts and was a good time. This cruise grew to be very big, approx. 700-1,000 cars on a good Saturday night. My friends and I would go every week and it was a blast. What wrecked the whole thing was these individuals with the import cars, and I am not picking on the import car enthusiasts when I say this, but it was in fact their doing.

These folks started showing up on Saturday nights blasting their stereos, driving reckless in the lot, smoking marijuana & drinking alcohol out in the open and basically being $hitheads. They would also drive like idiots out in the main roadway in front of the shopping center where the cruise took place, squealing tires, racing etc... It got so bad one night that a group of these goons picked a fight with the disc jockey there.

You can guess what happened next. All of us musclecar or vintage car enthusiasts that would frequent this place stopped going. The d.j. quit and one night the local Police swarmed the cruise and issued citations and made arrests.

Hey we all street raced at one time or another. But it is against the law and that is the bottom line here. There are also responsible people and ignorant, non-responsible people out there that do this. I think in this case these individuals are their own worst enemies...

One last note, remember what you are reading in this article here. The media likes to stir up controversy. They get off on that. They are only telling you what they want you to know or think, I'm sure. Like they said "warrantless searches", I ask what warrantless searches??? I'll bet this is all just to get people in a tizzy. If the Police did do this knowingly violating civil rights, there maybe some good case law and lawsuits coming down the pike!! Sometimes "warrantless searches" are justified based on the circumstances at hand especially with motor vehicles. If this was the case they sure didn't tell you that in the article. They just make it sound like these people had their civil rights violated for no good reason!! There is more to this than what the article reads. I was not physically there, nor do I know anyone involved, but I'll bet money on that!!

Thats my .02

Rich

[AutoInsane]

California is a communist country!! Other than the weather why the hell would anyone want to live there??? Oppressive police and a major gang problem to name a few issues.....

[COPO 70 RS/Z28]

You should live in the peoples republic of Illinois. Bad weather and socialist government.

One thing though, Lots of good cars and cruises.

I guess its not all bad

[70 copo]

Poem that is applicable here

When the they came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

Now substitute the terms "Import Tuner" "Day 2 car", "Resto Mod", or "Muscle Car".

From the reporting that I gather here these kids were showing in a parking lot doing the freedom of assembly thing, and some cars were ticketed for street moving type violations and some cars were confiscated outright.

[427TJ]

It should read more like this:

When they came after the other guy I shouted my support.

When they came after me I said, "But I voted for you!"

They told me they aren't taking any chances.

[COPO 70 RS/Z28]

Boy I wonder what would happen with this?????

[70 copo]

Picture this... You are out driving your 69 z28 with Headers, and a few light modifications and oops you are of Japanese Heritage....and you run smack into this mess.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHR-UjdlZsA