How public can comment on proposal to curb street takeovers
Sep 23, 2024
Indianapolis officials introduce proposal to crack down on reckless driving
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis City-County Council on Monday night introduced a proposal to crack down on illegal street takeovers and reckless driving.
City-County Council members will hear people’s comments about the proposal during the Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in the City-County Building. That will be a public hearing so anyone wishing to speak can comment on this issue then.
Deby Abel, a resident of the far-east side, came to the Monday night introduction of the proposal. She told News 8 she is significantly affected by the noise and the danger from the car meet-ups in her neighborhood.
She says the proposal does not go far enough to tackle this problem and needs stronger punishments for anyone involved in these activities.
The proposal would require the city to impound these cars for a minimum of 30 days.
Abel wants to see the ordinance require the car be impounded while offenders work their way through the legal system, and she wants to see the owners pay a daily impound fee.
“You take their car away? They’re going to be hurting,” Abel said.
If caught and convicted, anyone participating or promoting these events would be fined $250, and spectators would be fined $100.
“They could care less about $250,” Abel said. “It’s not hard for them to raise $250.”
Abel fears for her safety during the car meet-ups in her neighborhood. “It sounds like it’s in my backyard and you can hear the screaming and yelling, and I’ve watched the videos, and it’s not only unsafe for us in the neighborhood coming and going, and we’re afraid to go out at night. It’s the kids that are involved. Somebody’s going to get hurt.”
At least one person was hurt during a spinning event in 2023, according to Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
These car meet-ups also have a lot of violent run-ins with law enforcement that end in damage to cars and safety risks.
“The disrespect for law enforcement is just out of control,” Abel said.
Previous Coverage
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