Montgomery County lawmakers move to prohibit ‘street takeovers’

A committee of Montgomery County lawmakers Monday advanced a bill to prohibit “street takeovers,” rallies that can draw dozens of cars and hundreds of people.

Two of three members of the County Council’s Public Safety Committee voted to send the legislation to the full council, which would have to approve it for it to take effect.

Counties and cities across the country in recent years have grappled with an increase in takeovers, which often involve racing, blocking intersections and other illegal activities.

In April, police announced the arrests of three suspects in connection with a street takeover in February that resulted in damage to two police cruisers. In one instance, an officer was inside the cruiser when the rear window was broken and the windshield was smashed.

“We spend a lot of time and a lot of personnel chasing these events around Montgomery County so that something bad doesn’t happen,” Interim Police Chief Darren Francke told the committee on Monday. “We find guns. We find stolen vehicles. We’ve had shootings at these events in other counties.”

Council members Sidney Katz, chair of the public safety committee, and Dawn Luedtke voted to move the bill forward with an amendment to increase the fines for participating in a takeover from $1,000 to $5,000.

It’s not clear when the full council will consider the bill.

Luedtke said during the Monday’s committee hearing that participants often gamble significant sums on car races during takeovers.

“We need to make the fine significant enough that it has a deterrent effect,” she said.

Council member Kristin Mink, who sits on the committee, abstained from the vote. She said she is generally supportive of the legislation but worries that the bill as written could stymie peaceful protests.

She said she wants the full Montgomery County Council to consider language that “provides a little clearer protections” for peaceful protest.

Council member Andrew Friedson introduced the legislation earlier this year.

“Residents deserve to feel safe on our roads and in their neighborhoods,” he said in a statement at the time. “This bill gives law enforcement the clarity and authority needed to intervene earlier, disrupt these coordinated events, and keep people out of harm’s way.”

Montgomery County’s proposed law is similar to recently enacted state and local laws, including one in Prince George’s County.

Montgomery County’s bill prohibits, among other activities, participating in an unlawful race, speed contest or stunt driving. It forbids people from acting as timekeepers or flaggers in races and from organizing or promoting a street takeover. It also mandates that anyone at a street takeover disperse in response to police orders.

“If it’s not dealt with effectively, someone is going to die in one of these in Montgomery County and we don’t want that,” Francke said.