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Anti street racing bill
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| TO guy |
From Citynews.ca
| quote: | Feds Propose Bill To Crack Down On Street Racers
Thursday June 15, 2006
It's been glamorized in the movies, but the reality of street racing is anything but glitzy.
Thirty-four people have died as a result of the illegal activity over the last six years and on Thursday the federal government made good on its promise to get tough on drivers who put others at risk because of their need for speed.
The feds introduced a bill aimed at cracking down on road racers by making the competitions a specific Criminal Code offence. Street racing is already illegal under other sections of the Code, but federal Justice Minister Vic Toews said this move will send an important message.
"What we need to do in this particular case is send a specific message that the crime of street racing, regardless of whether it is already captured by other offences, is important, and that we want to increase the penalties for specifically street racing," he explained.
"That would include raising the potential sentences by increasing the maximums and also by creating mandatory periods of prohibition."
This move comes after a three recent incidents, one deadly, that involved alleged street racers. Last month, Robert and Lisa Manchester were killed when one of two cars allegedly participating in a road race plowed into their vehicle. The couple leaves a seven-year-old daughter behind.
Thirty-two-year-old Allison Hickey is in hospital, unable to speak or move the right side of her body after an alleged street racer plowed into her car earlier this month. She and her fiancé were heading to a movie when the crash happened.
And police believe street racing may have been the cause of a dramatic crash on Highway 427 near Rathburn Road Tuesday night that demolished a Corvette. The person behind the wheel is now fighting for their life in hospital.
To highlight the dangers of road racing and the damage it can cause, provincial officials and York Regional Police were on hand Thursday morning in Markham as two illegal racing cars were demolished (pictured). The province also has an ongoing anti-street racing campaign underway.
"By destroying these cars, we are ensuring that they will never be on the streets in Canada again engaged in the activity of street racing," Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant said.
"Secondly, destroying these cars is intended to send a powerful message of deterrence. We are seeking ... to send a message to street racing motorheads and drivers that we're not just going to take your keys away for a few weeks, we are going to take your precious vehicles away from you. We're going to bring them into a scrap yard where they will be destroyed."
The two vehicles that were reduced to scrap metal Thursday had thousands of dollars of engine modifications and had been seized by police separately in 2003 and 2004. They were seized under the Civil Remedies Act, which authorizes the Attorney General to ask civil courts to freeze, seize and forfeit the proceeds and instruments of unlawful activity to the Crown. |
I looked around for the Bill the article mentions, but couldn't find anything. Is this government taking away our right to street racing Jay? |
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| Floorwhore |
good.
throw them in jail. |
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| Jayx1 |
i agree with this law in principal. However, i dont think it should be implemented without provisions to accomodate street racers in a safe and legal venue.
Part of the bill should include a mandate to build or encourage development of safe racing facilities. Just banning something wont change anything.
Also i am disturbed that the police and authorities are actually seizing modified cars and DESTROYING them on public display. Whats next? going back to the medeival practice of stringing up criminals by their toe nails in the town square to serve as an example? |
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| TO guy |
| quote: | Originally posted by Jayx1
i agree with this law in principal. However, i dont think it should be implemented without provisions to accomodate street racers in a safe and legal venue.
Part of the bill should include a mandate to build or encourage development of safe racing facilities. Just banning something wont change anything.
Also i am disturbed that the police and authorities are actually seizing modified cars and DESTROYING them on public display. Whats next? going back to the medeival practice of stringing up criminals by their toe nails in the town square to serve as an example? |
I wish I could find the Bill on Parliament site, so this is we don't have to be guessing. But yeah, I would imagine that if "car racing" was done in a legal and safe environment it would not be "street racing" and would be a permitted activity.
I would hate to think that F1 weekend, the Indy etc would have to be cancelled .... |
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| Floorwhore |
| quote: | Originally posted by TO guy
I would hate to think that F1 weekend, the Indy etc would have to be cancelled .... |
that wouldnt happen |
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| oldschool420 |
| quote: | Originally posted by Floorwhore
that wouldnt happen |
+1 They are looking to get rid of the idiots flying on public roads... I agree that some kind of plan for safe and legal racing should be put into place, but it's no excuse for racing. I like how they are destroying these cars publically, maybe it will actually make racers think twice before they do it. You can't blame this on the police, the idiots decided to race, they knew the consequences and they got caught, so it's their own damn fault. |
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| Jayx1 |
| quote: | Originally posted by oldschool420
+1 They are looking to get rid of the idiots flying on public roads... I agree that some kind of plan for safe and legal racing should be put into place, but it's no excuse for racing. I like how they are destroying these cars publically, maybe it will actually make racers think twice before they do it. You can't blame this on the police, the idiots decided to race, they knew the consequences and they got caught, so it's their own damn fault. |
you condone the state arbitrarly seizing private property and then destroying it on public display?
Whats next? Demolishing perfectly good houses because they were used for grow ops?
Whats this country coming to? |
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| MarkT |
site seems fine at the moment...
I dunno...I think this Bill is more of a vote grabber than anything.
They could have strengthened existing laws...speeding, criminal negligence causing death, etc...and some provinces already have addresses street racing in their own laws...but explictly addressing "street racing" is politically beneficial for the federal gov't.
it's not "bad" legislation, of course...just not as necessary as Harper's gov't suggests, IMHO. |
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| TO guy |
| quote: | Originally posted by MarkT
site seems fine...just keep clicking 'next' at the bottom ;) |
Yeah yeah, 10 minutes ago C-18 was the last bill in the table .....
Looks like a good ammendmen, life if you cause death, 14 years max otherwise. |
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| VERTiG0 |
| I'm going to get a top fuel alcohol fueled monster and run it up and down Yonge St. looking for Honda drivers. |
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| Moral Hazard |
| quote: | Originally posted by Jayx1
i agree with this law in principal. However, i dont think it should be implemented without provisions to accomodate street racers in a safe and legal venue.
Part of the bill should include a mandate to build or encourage development of safe racing facilities. Just banning something wont change anything.
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Wait.... encouraging the building/development of sfe racing facilities.... wouldn't that be government intervention? How could you suggest such a thing?
FYI, there are a lot of old race tracks around that closed following the death of drag racing in the 70s. If there was a profit in it I'm sure people would open them back up. Is that not the better way (from your perspective). Honestly, why should the government be expected to subsidise these people's hobby? |
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