The county Board of Supervisors Tuesday approved a motion calling for a doubling of fines for street takeovers and sideshows, with the crackdown targeting participants in such events along with people who organized and promote them.
Street racing and takeovers have long been issues in the county, now exacerbated by the use of social media to amplify the events.
“Though street takeovers have occurred in Los Angeles since the 1980s, they have increased dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic and have become increasingly more dangerous; oftentimes resulting in deaths, robberies, high-speed chases, and more,” according to a motion that went before the board Tuesday.
“One of the main catalysts of this increase in illegal street takeovers is the use of social media.”
In September 2023, the board passed a motion to address illegal street takeovers and racing in the county and hosted multiple education and prevention seminars for youth, according to the motion introduced by Supervisor Holly Mitchell.
A Street Takeover Reduction Workgroup formed by the county with representatives from relevant departments, partner agencies and community organizations recommended ordinance changes to discourage attendance and participation at illegal street takeover events.
The latest recommendations include increased applicable fines from $500 to $1,000.
The board Tuesday directed the County Counsel, the CEO and other relevant departments to report back to the board in 90 days with a draft amendment to increase the misdemeanor fines, and to include parking lots in the ordinance.
“Cities that border unincorporated areas like Compton and Paramount have enacted higher administrative penalties, and the county must match their efforts to ensure we curtail this behavior in our unincorporated areas,” the motion stated.
Mitchell’s motion also noted how social media promotes and facilitates the activities despite some content prohibition rules. Some users are also monetizing illegal street takeover content, bringing in revenue to continue participation.
“Live streaming these illegal events often causes an influx of participants and can facilitate a localized environment becoming more prone to rapid growth in the illegality, often overwhelming law enforcement efforts to mitigate and disperse the events,” the motion adds.
The board also directed the CEO and the County Counsel, to send a five-signature letter to prominent main social media platform companies requesting them to enforce their own terms and conditions, and remove and demonetize posts that promote including illegal street takeover events.