State and city officials were in New Haven, Connecticut, on Tuesday, advocating for stricter penalties for people who engage in reckless road behavior. The city already has local legislation to curb ATV and dirtbike riding on the road, including cameras to track them and fines for gas stations that fill the vehicles.
Three bills legislating the issue at the state level are currently under consideration.
S.B. 1284 raises fines for people caught organizing or participating in street takeovers — $1,000 for the first instance and an additional $500 for the next two. It would also allow municipalities to destroy the ATVs and dirt bikes of people who participate, a change to the current law that New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson said is necessary.
“We have over 75 ATVs here,” Jacobson said at the New Haven Police training academy. “And we took the prior legislation — which was excellent, and we thank you for that — but part of it was that they had to be put into an auction. We didn't want to do that because we don't want them back on the street.”
S.B. 1389 would allow municipalities to seize vehicles, including cars, used in street takeovers.
State Senator Gary Winfield (D-New Haven) co-chairs the Judiciary Committee. He said the committee is often hesitant to add penalties to legislation, but not in this situation.
“At the point where we are talking about adding penalties, enhancing penalties, you know that we are very serious about what is in front of us because that is not the normal course of action that we take,” Winfield said.
The legislature is also considering a bill to increase penalties for people caught driving more than 100 miles per hour. A second offense would result in the car being impounded.
It’s sponsored by Attorney General William Tong.
“If you drive more than 100 miles an hour and you put people's lives at risk on our state's roadways, you forfeit your right to drive on our state's roadways,” Tong said.
A regional task force to address street takeovers and car theft was established in November. So far, they’ve seized 65 vehicles, issued 33 tickets, and made five arrests.
