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There’s Only One Ghost Rider

I sometimes ask myself what’s going on in the minds of some riders when they try to flee the police. Police pursuits are definitely a huge source of adrenaline, but the expenses for such an overdose of excitement can be sky high, with crashes, massive property damage, injuries, fines and jail time, plus the risk of actually kicking the bucket after a high-speed crash.
Still, every now and then, certain fellows choose to try out their luck against the cops. While this is a legal matter the police and prosecutors can and will solve sooner or later, another thing is puzzling me. If you decide to break the law, no matter how you choose to do it, and have a video record of your deed, why in the world would you be THAT stupid to post the video online?

This question popped once more in my mind during the last couple of weeks as I was reading articles of riders being identified and apprehended by the police after being tracked thanks to the videos they posted online. Funnily or not, some of these fellows had long rap sheets, and at the time of their “heroic runs,” they were also breaking the law. Unregistered or stolen bikes, fake plates, suspended licenses adding to speeding, all sorts of misdemeanor, failing to stop upon being asked to adding to speeding, breaking a host of road regulations and whatnot.

Charges piling up and fleeing the cops have never been the best way to seek a prosecutor’s clemency, so inevitably, these folks end up in prison or get away with revoked licensed, community service and hefty fines. Are there people out there who still believe that the Internet is some sort of sandbox where you can completely erase your sketches if you don’t like them anymore?

Well, any fellow who knows one or two things about the Internet should know that the interwebs are more like a black hole: once you put info on it, you can never take it back, in a sense that chances are it will still be available in a dark corner of a server, even though users believe it was deleted and gone for good. Even more, when it comes to video recordings of law-breaking acts with yet-unidentified authors, the cops couldn’t be any happier with every single lead which would help them catch the perpetrators… so they’ll go a long way to find out more.

Back to such criminals, it’s funny to analyze the rather primitive thought patterns. I mean, they first don’t want to meet the cops face-to-face and decide to split, knowing that their sport bike is no match for a police cruiser. Then, back in the safety of their home, they download the recording from their helmet- or bike-mounted camera, watch it time and again, and decide the best idea is to brag with their amazing race online, showing their buddies and the online community how good they were outrunning the cops.

I cannot help remembering a particular case I wrote about just weeks ago, with a guy doing just the same. In the end, the cops got to him, and his lawyer’s last defense was to claim there is no evidence that undeniably placed his client on the respective bike. “Well, let’s just check the ankle brace your paroled customer was wearing that day,” the prosecutor said. The GPS route stored by the brace was superimposed over the route of the police pursuit and obviously offered irrefutable proof that our guy was the very rider who fled the cops that day.

I leave to you to judge the reasoning leading this chap to post his video on YouTube or even speak about it with his friends. I mean, OK, you broke the law, fled and outrun the cops… because you didn’t want to be caught. Then why in heaven’s name offer the police such an easy-to-follow lead that will bring the LEOs at your very doorstep?

Some say that the cops are too nosy combing the video social media, but I’d rather say they’re just doing their job, using the perks of living in a modern, IT-laden society. Basically, they’re only looking at what people are uploading onto the web, and not searching through someone’s personal computer without a warrant. It’s the people who provide evidence for their (sometimes not that puny) trespasses, and claiming that the cops should not be searching for evidence is just silly.

However, I know that such folks will keep on breaking the law in almost any way possible (on a motorbike) and then brag on their deeds posting these videos online… only to hear the doorbell ring later and hear a firm voice saying “Good day ma’am, I am officer X. Does Jack Z live here? We’d like to have a word with him.”

For crying out loud people, if you’re not looking for some jail time, stop posting your stupid videos online. 99.95% of them aren’t even half as cool as you believe them to be. Just be happy that you made it… this time. There’s only one Ghost Rider.
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