Why can't they leave Sturgis alone and keep their sh-t in San Berdoo and Hollister!
Posted on 08/12/2006 4:17:00 AM PDT by SLB
STURGIS, S.D. (AP) -- Biker gangs have made the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally a violence-marred affair in the past.
The rally, which draws about half a million people each August to the Black Hills in western South Dakota, has since gotten older, laid-back and more diverse.
But this year, gunshots about 75 miles away reminded attendees about the gangs. Authorities said two men affiliated with the Hells Angels shot and wounded five Outlaws Motorcycle Club members in Custer State Park earlier this week.
Suzanne Church, who has ministered to biker gang members at Sturgis since 1997, said she hopes there's no more violence.
"We hate to see people die and go to hell," she said.
The rally attracts bikers of all walks of life, who ride throughout the Black Hills, a patch of forest and valleys 100 miles long and 50 miles wide on South Dakota's western edge. Sturgis, a town of about 7,000, is on the northern edge of the Hills, while Custer State Park is in the south.
Some Hells Angels members own land near Sturgis, so the gang has a presence at every rally, said Jim Bush, Sturgis police chief. Law enforcement officers knew that hundreds of Outlaws members planned to gather at a rented southern Hills campground, Bush said.
The Outlaws are one of the nation's four largest motorcycle gangs, along with the Hells Angels, Pagans and Bandidos. The Outlaws have chapters in 20 states, Europe, Canada and Australia.
A posting on its Web site said law enforcement agencies were informed of the group's plans to attend Sturgis.
It said: "We are not going there to makes any type of statement, or display of power. We are simply going there to enjoy the Sturgis venue, see the historical sights and spend time with our Brothers."
Authorities have their own term for the gangs.
"We classify these organizations as crime syndicates," said Bernard Zapor, special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives field office in St. Paul, Minn.
The last major violence involving motorcycle gangs during the Sturgis rally was in 1990, when a Sons of Silence member shot an Outlaws gang member during a bar brawl in which two other Sons of Silence members were stabbed.
"They have not changed," Bush said of the major gangs. "They're as organized and involved in crime as they ever have been."
It was one of only a few major rally-related incidents of violence, Bush said. The only other gang arrests have been three or four members picked up for unrelated crime, he said.
"They usually get along pretty good," Bush said.
In Tuesday's shooting, Chad John Wilson, 30, of Lynnwood, Wash., and John James Midmore, 32, of Valparaiso, Ind., face five counts of attempted first-degree murder. A judge set bond Thursday at $5 million each.
One victim was still in critical condition at Rapid City Regional Hospital on Thursday. Another was in stable condition at a Sioux Falls hospital, said Sara Rabern of the South Dakota Attorney General's office.
On Main Street in Sturgis, a few people wearing Hells Angels vests and T-shirts were spotted at the 66th annual rally, which ends Sunday.
The gang runs a vendor table that sells club pins, T-shirts, bumper stickers and other items. None of three men staffing the table wanted to discuss the shooting. A worker at a tattoo shop down the street that the gang runs also refused comment.
Jim Vlahakis, state Division of Criminal Investigation director, said more than 300 Outlaws members representing 119 different chapters have been seen in the area, along with 80 to 100 Hells Angels members.
Vlahakis said authorities plan to meet with the two gangs to "try to head off any potential problems" but had not done so as of Thursday.
Officers were prepared to respond to gang violence, Bush said, adding that eventual retaliation is likely.
"It may not happen here," Bush said. "It could happen a month from now" somewhere else.
On the Net:
Outlaws: http://www.outlawsmc.com/
Hells Angels: http://www.hells-angels.com/
Back in the sixties, the HA volunteered to form a unit and go behind enemy lines to fight as counter guerillas.
That would have been in Vietnam of course
Dumbest comment I've ever seen.
I've been around these people all my life. Been a patch holder (Not Red and White) for nearly thirty years and have NEVER seen any club member attack anyone unprovoked. If you pulled off your lame fantasy, you'd be headed for a long stay in the hospital if not a permanent dirt nap. Bikers take care of their own.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
You bullies all stick together.
I hve gotten it from the rest of the so-called Bikers of Peace from others, too.
I am sure the doo-doo from their depends will really hurt me.
Justice is not the same as Bullying. Sauce for the goose.
I can tell we have a lot of big, big men here who got their kicks out of beating up on those less strong.
Going back about 35 years ago, when the Hell's Angels from Riverside and San Bernardino passed through the Antelope Valley, they got stopped and they, their motorcycles, guns etc. were all run for wants/warrants and some arrests were made (this was at the L.A. Co. line).
About 15 miles later, somebody else repeated the process. 30 miles or so later, once again another cop would repeat the process. This was before the advent of huge computer data bases, so the process was somewhat "lengthy".... Ha. It usually took them about a day to transit a hundred and fifty miles or so. Eventually they found another route to take north for the big events and stayed the hell out of our area. Semper Fi.... (was it harrassment? of course but it got them to stay out of our neighborhoods)...
Why can't they leave Sturgis alone and keep their sh-t in San Berdoo and Hollister!
Hey, 1 out of 4 ain't bad!
I wouldn't impugn your caution around 1%'ers, but IMHO the average cancer survivor is more of a "badass". It doesn't take THAT much balls to be a hellion when surrounded by a dozen or two like-minded companions.
You don't get out much, do you.
Sorry -- as you can tell it is a sensitive subject.
The real balls 1%'ers have is that any individual member is willing to take the fall and go to prison for maiming or killing. That doesn't sound like much, but it's all it takes to strike fear into anyone who knows them, including me.
Are the Hessians still around?
Sort of like other organized criminal outfits. Eff them. But I respect your caution.
Exactly my point: you gotta be old to ride a Harley.
What a stupid thing to say. I have had a Harley since I was 21. I hardly call that old. I just have too much PRIDE to ride anything else.
You need high self esteem to pay $30K for a slow motorcycle?
I think it is called pride.
I've been around these people all my life. Been a patch holder (Not Red and White) for nearly thirty years and have NEVER seen any club member attack anyone unprovoked. If you pulled off your lame fantasy, you'd be headed for a long stay in the hospital if not a permanent dirt nap. Bikers take care of their own.
FreeDUMB only knows what he has seen in the movies. He knows nothing about them. I will bet he has never even been in a biker bar, much less think about going over and taking their walker away and laughing while they are on the ground. Big talk, but that is all.
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