******UPDATE 5/18/2007, THE BELOW CASE HAS BEEN OVERRULED BY THE STATE APPEALS COURT IN FAVOR OF THE CHP. YOU CAN READ MY NEW ARTICLE ABOUT THIS CASE BY CLICKING HERE!
A Superior Court Judge for the County of Santa Cruz has ruled that California’s Helmet Law is unconstitutional because it is vague and ambiguous.
The gist of the Court’s ruling is that the law cannot be uniformly enforced throughout the State the way it is written, so it is therefore unconstitutional.
Click here to see the actual Court Ruling which in Adobe PDF format.
I have heard that certain Police agencies are continuing to write helmet violation tickets notwithstanding the ruling from Santa Cruz.
You can bet that the State will appeal the ruling.
I am advocate of a biker’s right to chose as to whether they want wear a helmet when they ride a motorcycle or not. There are valid arguments for wearing helmets and not wearing helmets.
Notwithstanding the Court’s ruling, it is safe to say they if you decide to “not wear a helmet” while riding your motorcycle; you will probably still receive a ticket. The Court ruling will no doubt give you a legal basis for challenging the ticket in Court. The bottom line is whether you have the time and resources for challenging a helmet law violation using the Court’s ruling as a basis for your defense.
Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq. , Copyright 2006.
Welcome, my name is 
This should of happened a longtime ago, the problem is there is so many crooked judges in California refusing to listen that US Department if Transportion VMSS No. 218 is vague and it can’t not be complied with.No State can have a helmet law without a list of approved and
dispproved helmets and there is none even though there is some
old statutes in place that state there is a yearly list. If it
wasn’t for California’s helmet law placed back in 1992, Congress
and other States wouldn’t have been forced by the anti helmet media it
made when the law passed and so did the world of hate was by created of anti helmet legislation. States have repealed or modified their helmet
laws besides people challanging the courts in different states
lead by public court cases from California.
However now we have one of several unconstitution court decisions in California, should be enough to turn the law over and ride lidless.
Our State registrations are at there lowest levels since 1991, the year we didn’t have a helmet law, registraions continued to
decline and never improved because of the anti helmet motorcyclists
sick of the helmet legislation lead by the famous California
Highway Patrol.
After receiving so many tickets, now with the over turn, it is time for a refund on those 14 years of helmet tickets.
Looks like Florida representives are rethinking our helmet laws here. At this time you can ride without a helmet if you carry $100,000 in bodily damage coverages. About ten years ago when the law was we had to wear helmets, I saw a man pull out of the Carribean Club in Key Largo in front of somebody on his bike. The biker had on a DOT helmet but when his head hit the asphalt that helmet spidered and cracked. So does one really have much of a advantage with a helmet on?????
What a lot of crap. Dumb american bikers.
Wear helmets!
I’ve seen accidents…..you won’t believe wat asphalt can do to your face.
But since you lot think you wil never crash…!????!
Same discussion went on 30 years ago in Europe. So get out of the middle-ages en think!
Scott’s registration statistics need to be corrected.
Motorcycle registrations in CA dropped for a short while, following the lid law, but then began rising again with the influx of the yuppie hoards.
I discuss it here: http://www.bikernation.net/bikercivics_04_07.htm
As a “responsibile” community, we gotta stop playing the convenient stats game…leave that to those cheaters at the NHTSA and the CHP.
Look at my California Motorcycle stats webpage: http://www.bikernation.net/calstats.htm
Yeah, our registration numbers woulda been MUCH higher without the lid law, since the MIC/M$F sez we’ve had 13 stellar years of sales growth, (or whatever, it’s STOPPED this year) but he’s tweaking stats to fit his hypothesis, and that’s what the other side does, not us. What we look at is simple; the deaths per accident ratio. It’s something we compare easily, pre-lid law to post lid law, utilizing the CHP’s very OWN SWITRS stats. Cool, huh? They know we’re right, and this year, while lobbying against our lid law MODIFICATION (a repeal is an entirely different beast)…the CHP sent in a flunky to tout the “fact” of the matter as being that if a motorcycle accident occurs, it could slow traffic as other motorists pass by. They’re up against the wall…and they know it.
I just heard that a U.S. Congressman is trying to push for a Federal Helmet Law! I will find out more about this proposal and write an article about it if it is true.
Norm
Well Henko, I am an American Biker and I take offense to your comments about “dumb American Bikers.”
The difference between you guys in Europe and us Americans is that we don’t like to bend over and give up our rights on a whim. We like freedom and the freedom to choose.
I myself wear a helmet, however, my opinion is that all Americans should have the freedom to choose.
There is just something about freedom that maybe you Europeans do not understand.
Norm
My dad is a radiologist and more accidents on his table are from motorcyclists. You would think that it would be common sense to wear a helmet and protect your noggin’ but why do you think that people choose not to?
Personally I think it should be our choice to wear a helmet or not.
Same goes with seatbelt.
If your under 18 It should be required.
As your not legally considered a adult in the USA.
I was in a motorcycle accident when i was 16.
No helmet just t-shirt jeans and shoes.
ya my face got tore up a bit. but back of my head was bruised from tumbling backwards.
Helmets create more blindspots & can put us in more danger.
I hate helmets but if I am racing down the highway Yes I would want a helmet. but if I am cruising or going to the store or to go fishing. No I do not want a helmet.
and about henko that comment should never have been approved. due to fact he is calling americans stupid.
its all about choice.
something we are losing here in usa.
we need to have our choices back.
and if i could go back and ride again to get in a accident the day i got in it knowing what i did now. I would still choose to not wear a helmet.
was called stupidity of me & the owner of the bike I borrowed.