Motorcycle Attorney Blog; If you ride anywhere in the United States, you already know that motorcyclists don’t always get fair treatment—especially when it comes to the law. Now, that may be changing. 50 U.S. House members have recently signed a bill that would effectively bar the U.S. Transportation Secretary from providing funds that support motorcycle-only checkpoints. These checkpoints notoriously single out motorcyclists and unfairly discriminate against them.
The American Motorcyclist Association began first tracking these unfair motorcycle-only checkpoints back in 2007. Since then there have been many public motorcycle-only checkpoints cropping up all over the United States. In 2011, the State of Georgia conducted motorcycle-only roadside checkpoints when they realized that thousands of motorcyclists were traveling through their state en route to Daytona Bike Week in Florida. Later that year, another was conducted in North Virginia during Rolling Thunder’s highly profiled Memorial Day Demonstration.
Three states, however, have outlawed this discriminatory practice already—Virginia, North Carolina, and New Hampshire and other states, such as California, Illinois, Missouri, and New Jersey are introducing legislation to prohibit them as well.
Why single out motorcyclists for safety concerns? That is a big question that many are unable to answer. Motorists of all vehicles cause accidents, ride unsafely, and exhibit unsafe driving behavior, yet there are no “Minivan only checkpoints”. The very existence of such a program directly discriminates against a group of people—motorcyclists—and is considered profiling and discriminatory by nature.
If the new bill, H.R. 904, is passed, then this would be a huge step towards motorcycle equality and would help prevent these ultimately discriminatory practices from occurring in the future.
Have you been discriminated against in one of these motorcycle only checkpoints? Share your thoughts about them on our blog!
At Russ Brown Motorcycle Attorneys®, we understand why you ride and we know that these issues are important to you and to your enjoyment of riding. We also know that motorcyclists need special protection no matter where they ride. That’s why we are dedicated to providing assistance to all motorcyclists–at all stages–and at all skill levels. That’s also why we created BAM, a free roadside and legal assistance program. Call us today at 1-800-4-BIKERS to learn more about BAM or our law firm. We Ride—We Care—We Win!