Police defend arresting more than 100 in weekend street racing bust, citing possible danger
By Henri Hollis
Atlanta police contribute to multi-agency effort.
In a statewide street racing crackdown over the weekend, state law enforcement agencies and Atlanta police impounded 89 vehicles, including 10 in the city of Atlanta alone, officials said.
The multi-agency effort also resulted in dozens of DUIs, several stolen guns recovered, a handful of drug arrests and hundreds of citations, according to a news release from the Georgia Department of Public Safety. The law enforcement agencies involved in the crackdown include the Georgia State Patrol, Motor Carrier Compliance Division, GBI, Department of Natural Resources and the Atlanta Police Department.
The DPS announcement also credited the crackdown with capturing 29-year-old Othal Wallace, who is suspected of shooting a Daytona Beach police officer in the head Wednesday night. Wallace was found in DeKalb County and arrested on an attempted murder charge, the announcement said. The Daytona Beach officer, 26-year-old Jason Raynor, remained at the hospital in critical condition as of Saturday, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Atlanta police released their own statistics from the weekend on social media. The APD Street Racing detail conducted 127 traffic stops from Friday through Sunday. Those stops resulted in 176 citations, 10 arrests and 10 vehicle impounds, the APD said.
The statewide statistics, which are inclusive of the APD statistics and cover the same time period, are based on 759 traffic stops, DPS said. Those stops resulted in:
– DUIs – 28
– Reckless driving charges – 32
– Citations/arrests – 758
– Warnings – 483
– Pursuits – 40
– Wanted persons found – 6
– Stolen guns recovered – 3
– Vehicles impounded – 89
– Drug arrests – 6
Along with violent crime, street racing has become a major focus for local and state politicians, as well as law enforcement agencies.
A new state law, which enjoyed broad bipartisan support, was passed in May which allows for higher penalties for street racers, the AJC reported. The law created a new offense called reckless stunt driving and gives police greater latitude to seize offenders’ vehicles.
Although street racing has grabbed headlines in Atlanta and other municipalities in the metro area, the statewide statistics show that the trend is not confined to the state’s capital city.
Read the original story on AJC.com.
