By Mitchell Proner, AIM attorney (Aid to Injured Motorcyclists) NY and CT, and National Attorney Chair NCOM (National Coalition of Motorcyclists)
I am an experienced rider that survived a motorcycle accident in which I broke my wrist, ankle, and seven bones in my back. I also regularly teach continuing legal education classes for fellow attorneys on how to try a motorcycle accident case. I also have the only lawsuit in the nation challenging Law enforcement on the Constitutional issues regarding "Motorcycle Only Checkpoints". With this in mind I always think it is important for everyone to pay close attention to Rider safety.
Nationally, May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month. Throughout May, the National Safety Council will encourage motorists to share the road with motorcyclists and be extra alert when they are nearby. In New York State, unlike the rest of the Country, announcements have been made in the past that June is "Motorcycle Safety Month".
This June we can expect to see "Motorcycle only checkpoints" Like the past three years, this year the New York State law enforcement community has also requested money to "educate" the motorcyclists. The New York State Governor's Traffic Safety Committee in 2011 has awarded monetary grants for the following programs statewide: Impaired Driving, "Buckle Up NY", Community Program, Child Passenger Safety, Pedestrian/Bicycle Safety, Roadway Safety, School Bus Safety, Selective Traffic Enforcement, Occupant Protection, Planning and Administration, Traffic Records, and of course "Motorcycle Safety".
The Motorcycle Safety Grants are as follows:
Herkimer Village Police Department -- MC -- Program -- $7,200
Ontario County Sheriff's Office -- MC -- Motorcycle Safety Traffic Initiative-- $7,600
Suffolk County Police Department -- MC -- Motorcycle Safety Enforcement and Education 2011-- $30,500
Warren County Sheriff's Office -- MC -- Motorcycle Safety Initiative -- $28,800
NYS Department of Motor Vehicles -- MC -- Motorcycle Safety Awareness and Training --$22,150
New York State Police -- MC -- Initiative -- $167,395
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In the New York State Governor's Traffic Safety Committee report included is information on "motorcycle only checkpoints". The report indicated that motorcycle safety checkpoints will be "deployed in strategic locations to check for license and registration violations, non-compliant helmets, faulty or illegal equipment and other violations. Variable message signs and other methods including aerial enforcement may be used to ensure mandatory compliance with the checkpoint. The checkpoints may also be used in conjunction with Police investigation, enforcement, and research initiatives.... Further Police officer training on motorcycle enforcement issues and techniques will be conducted. The training will focus on safety violations such as unapproved helmets, equipment violations such as tires and lighting, and altered motorcycles, especially those with loud exhaust systems. Trained officers will be deployed to enforce these laws and issue tickets to violators". These officers are being paid overtime to work checkpoints.
Rather than checkpoints, I support efforts to educate the public that motorcycles are out there. I believe the law enforcement community should put efforts to educate the public accordingly and end the unconstitutional "motorcycle only checkpoints".
My law firm, Proner and Proner has filed suit in Federal Court for the Northern District of New York. The New York lawsuit is the first to seek a judgment declaring these checkpoints unconstitutional. The New York State Troopers who created and implemented the checkpoint program have been named as defendants in the lawsuit. They are represented by the New York State Attorney General's office and adamantly maintain that the checkpoints intrusion on the individual liberties of motorcyclists are minimal.
The Supreme Court of the United States has repeatedly made it clear that any roadway checkpoint whose primary purpose is general crime control constitutes an unreasonable search and seizure under the Fourth Amendment and is presumptively unconstitutional. Notwithstanding that fact, the progress reports which the police prepared for the Governor's Traffic Committee specifically state that the grant funds are used "for overtime for intelligence gathering and the subsequent criminal and traffic enforcement." Although the police claim that the primary purpose of the equipment checkpoints is to promote highway safety, they admit that the checkpoints do not even attempt to address any major causes of motorcycle accidents which are reckless driving, driver inattentiveness and alcohol impairment.
The New York rider does not need a checkpoint to know that motorcyclists are much more vulnerable to crashes than other drivers. Many crashes occur because the motorist did not keep a proper lookout. Perhaps the driver was even distracted by texting or other cell phone use. I have yet to see a motorcyclist texting while riding.
Motorcycle only checkpoints won't help motorists make a visual check for motorcyclists by checking mirrors and blind spots before entering or leaving a lane of traffic. Motorists should be educated to allow greater following distance behind a motorcycle and be extra cautious in intersections. Most crashes occur when a motorist fails to see a motorcyclist and turns left in front of a motorcycle.
My firm, Proner & Proner, is a law firm which specializes in a plaintiffs personal injury law but which has a long history of doing "pro bono" legal work representing motorcyclists throughout New York State. The firm pays for the costs in handling this Federal lawsuit against the motorcycle only checkpoints by donating fees earned in handling motorcycle accident cases. If you have any questions or would like to get in touch with me you may email me at Mproner@Prolaw1.com or may find Proner and Proner on the internet at www.Bikerhelp.com.
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