As of Monday this week (May 15) the City of Austin has become Biker Unfriendly by enacting the Helmet Law. They are pulling over and issuing tickets to all bikers not wearing helmets. If you have the sticker on your plates then they let you slide but are making all others go to court and prove the have the qualifications to go w/o their helmet, IE over 21 and having $10,000 in PIP on their insurance which isn't listed on the card, or have attended motorcycle classes. This is no joke; within 5 miles while going through town I was stopped 3 times in one trip through.
I have read through the whole bill and nothing seems to have changed from the way the law is now. If you do not want to wear a helmet then you must have a displayed sticker, or show proof of health insurance. I did see a section that was saying that a cop can NOT pull you over just to check if you have a sticker or insurance. In other words they can not pull you over if they see you not wearing a helmet.Maybe I am wrong but that is how I read it. By the way, this is NOT a City of Austin thing, it is a State bill.
Quote from: Gupone on June 03, 2009, 10:34:40 PMI have read through the whole bill and nothing seems to have changed from the way the law is now. If you do not want to wear a helmet then you must have a displayed sticker, or show proof of health insurance. I did see a section that was saying that a cop can NOT pull you over just to check if you have a sticker or insurance. In other words they can not pull you over if they see you not wearing a helmet.Maybe I am wrong but that is how I read it. By the way, this is NOT a City of Austin thing, it is a State bill.I actually have a buddy who is an officer and when it comes to motorcycles, they don't have to have a reason to pull you over, unlike a four wheeler. So.......you could just be doing absolutely nothing wrong, but they will pull you over. My buddy & I once got pulled over by a State Trooper and said she was just checking endorsements. Fortunately, I was all squared away, not so good for the buddy, no insurance, no helmet, no helmet exemption, & no motorcycle endorsement on license, damn dummy. So...........be cautious, and make sure all your i's are dotted and t's crossed.
Quote from: matap on June 04, 2009, 07:29:05 AMQuote from: Gupone on June 03, 2009, 10:34:40 PMI have read through the whole bill and nothing seems to have changed from the way the law is now. If you do not want to wear a helmet then you must have a displayed sticker, or show proof of health insurance. I did see a section that was saying that a cop can NOT pull you over just to check if you have a sticker or insurance. In other words they can not pull you over if they see you not wearing a helmet.Maybe I am wrong but that is how I read it. By the way, this is NOT a City of Austin thing, it is a State bill.I actually have a buddy who is an officer and when it comes to motorcycles, they don't have to have a reason to pull you over, unlike a four wheeler. So.......you could just be doing absolutely nothing wrong, but they will pull you over. My buddy & I once got pulled over by a State Trooper and said she was just checking endorsements. Fortunately, I was all squared away, not so good for the buddy, no insurance, no helmet, no helmet exemption, & no motorcycle endorsement on license, damn dummy. So...........be cautious, and make sure all your i's are dotted and t's crossed. Now I did not take the time to look up the current law but I think that the biggest change they are trying to pass is that they are telling cops they cannot just pull you over to check information. As for your friend, if he has or is pulling folks over just for the heck of it, he is in violation of your 4th amend rights of the US const. Now with this said, the government is always doing things they are not suppose to be doing just to see if they can get away with it until they get caught.It does not matter if you are driving a motorcycle, car or walking. If you get pulled over the first thing you want to always do even before you show your license or answer any question is ask the cop, "Is there a reason you are keeping me from continuing my travels?" I know this sounds corny but it is an old legal thing. What you are trying to do is establish why they are pulling you over and basically "seizing you", as they have to have a good reason for doing so. Then you can restrict them from trying to pull a random / widespread check. In other words if they say they pulled you over because they thought your tail light is out, then that is what they have to address and only that so do not give them a reason / permission to look for other things and never, I mean never consent to a search.I know this is a bit off topic but I just wanted those out there to not be afraid of the police as they really do work for you and it is our jobs as citizens to keep our employees in check and doing their job right.
The odds are in our favor. Thousands upon thousands of bikes. I have no clue how leo's will be in Austin for the ROT, but it will not be enough for them to check even 5% of the riders over the weekend. They will have plenty of other things to focus on then pulling over every biker they see without a helmet.
Or you could just wear a helmet... I know, craziness, but it is an option.
Believe me - you will be glad you have your helmet on when your head has the inevitable urge to strike that cop's night stick!
