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2 | Public Safety
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New street racing law does not ban all spectators
BY JOHN RUCH
jchnruch@reportemewspapers.net
A new Atlanta city ordinance widely
reported by media and public officials as
outlawing all spectators at illegal street
races actually does no such thing due to
the quiet removal of key language that
could have violated the civil liberties of
journalists, bystanders and others.
The ordinance — which does not even
contain the word “spectator” — may still
outlaw certain types of race observers
who do more than just watch, such as
those who pay an admission fee or even
just cheer for a driver. But one prominent
civil liberties attorney says the ordinance
is so vague and “poorly
written” that it would be
challenging to apply to
spectators and could still
lead to unconstitution
al arrests of innocent by
standers, reporters and
others.
The main effect of the
ordinance approved by
the City Council Aug. 3,
dubbed “Non-Driver Par
ticipation in Street Rac
ing and Reckless Driv
ing Exhibitions,” is to
reinforce existing state
law against street rac
ing by specifically out
lawing other participants
— such as those riding
along or paying to join
— and calling for maxi
mum penalties to be en
forced. Meanwhile, some
officials and residents
say, a lack of large-scale police response
means the noisy and dangerous late-night
racing continues to plague such areas as
Buckhead, where City Councilmember J.P.
Matzigkeit recently hired an off-duty offi
cer himself as a gesture of increased en
forcement.
The misreporting of the ordinance’s
effect on race-watching is based on early
publicity for lead sponsor Councilmem
ber Dustin Hillis’s intent to crack down
on street racing in part by killing demand
by punishing spectators. But key elements
of his draft ordinance later were quietly
withdrawn, apparently due to concerns
they would conflict with state law or the
U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights — includ
ing a provision that would have banned
photographing, filming or broadcasting
races.
When the ordinance passed, such ma
jor media as the Atlanta Journal-Consti
tution, WSB-TV and CBS46 incorrectly
reported that race-watching by bystand
ers was now illegal. “Watching street rac
ing in Atlanta could land you $1,000 fine
or even jail time,” said an Aug. 4 head
line on a WSB-TV website story that also
incorrectly reported that “just standing
around watching and recording” races
was now illegal. The national auto maga
zine MotorTrend picked up the story un
der the headline, “Even watching a street
race in Atlanta could net you a huge fine;
It doesn’t matter that you’re not doing the
racing, you’re in trouble.”
Matzigkeit made similar claims in his
Aug. 7 constituent newsletter, reporting
that the council “unanimously passed
stiffer penalties for spectators... We need
people engaging in illegal drag racing, as a
participant or a spectator, to be arrested.”
But the final version of the ordinance
says nothing explicit about banning spec
tators. In fact, its only direct reference to
spectators is to exempt from arrest those
who are “a mere bystander, passerby or
observer not aware of the illegal activity.”
And in the council meeting where it
was approved, Susan Garrett, a city attor
ney heading the Law Department’s pub
lic safety division, explained that “this leg
islation does not allow people to be cited
just for being present or watching. They
have to actually do something — collect
money, ride in the vehicle, or take some
other affirmative action to participate in
putting on the event. It’s not directed [at]
and can’t be used just for a bystander.”
“There are no prohibitions to merely
being a spectator, so you read it correctly,”
said Hillis in an Aug. 10 email when asked
to clarify the meaning of the ordinance.
Hillis did not respond to further ques
tions as to why the ordinance’s language
had changed and whether an official clar
ification would be issued to dispel the con
fusion and misreporting about spectators.
Matzigkeit referred questions about the
language to Hillis. Mayor Keisha Lance
Bottoms’ press office, the City Council
press office and the Atlanta Police Depart
ment also did not respond to questions
about the ordinance and how it would be
enforced.
Early concerns about the civil liberties
aspects of the original draft were raised
online by Dan Grossman, an attorney
known for his role as the lead counsel for
plaintiffs who sued the city over the infa
mous 2009 APD raid of Midtown’s Atlanta
Eagle gay bar. Grossman says the final ver
sion of the street racing ordinance is bet
ter, but is still concerning because it could
be read as prohibiting spectators who do
know a race is illegal but have every right
to view it — including journalists and an
gry neighbors.
“This is a really, really poorly written
statute,” said Grossman. “...There’s this
giant hole big enough to drive a truck
through, or a prisoner van through, in the
middle.”
Grossman said that in practical terms,
police officers would find it challenging to
determine who in a crowd is a “non-driver
participant” or not. The widespread mis
reporting that all spectators
are outlawed could influence
officers’ thinking and lead
to indiscriminate arrests, he
said.
“And so there’s a great like
lihood that officers will be
making an unlawful arrest,
especially because of the way
the law has been described
in the press,” said Grossman.
“This law has been described,
I would say, irresponsibly by
major news organizations
like the AJC... This is an invi
tation to trouble.”
Street racing crack
downs
Illegal street racing, some
times involving dozens of ve
hicles and hundreds of spec
tators, is a longstanding issue
in metro Atlanta. The Ga.
400 highway, with its long
straightaways, is notorious for late-night
racers. In Buckhead, racers frequent
ly appear on Peachtree Road and gather
in huge parking lots like the one at The
Dump Furniture Outlet on Sidney Marcus
Boulevard.
But with the reduced traffic of the CO-
VID-19 pandemic, street racers have tak
en advantage, appearing more frequently,
for longer periods and in bigger numbers.
In May, APD, the Georgia State Patrol and
other agencies collaborated on a citywide
crackdown that resulted in 44 arrests, 114
tickets and 29 vehicles impounded.
That same month, Hillis, who repre
sents Northwest Atlanta’s District 9, was
in the news with calls for a tougher street
racing ordinance. He aimed to crack
down not only on drivers, but “also to tar
get and penalize individuals who are spec
tators,” a City Council press release said
at the time. He wanted up to 6 months in
jail and a $1,000 fine for anyone racing or
watching a race.
Hillis’s original legislation outlawed
not only driving in a street race, but also
being a race organizer or being a non
driver participant. In the original version,
a participant was defined “any individual
who is present at an illegal street racing
exhibition for the purpose of taking part
in the event, by riding in a race vehicle as
driver or passenger; assisting or engaging
with the organizers and/or drivers in car
rying out the event; photographing, film
ing, recording, and/or broadcasting the
event; or who exchanges money or any
thing of value with any driver, car owner,
or other participant in connection with
the event.”
Legal speed bumps
The ordinance quickly hit speed
bumps. Responding to a CBS46 story
about Hillis’s proposal, Grossman took
to Twitter to question the constitution
ality of banning the recording of public
events. And the June 1 City Council meet
ing, where Hillis appeared to expect a
quick approval, happened to come at the
height of the George Floyd protests over
police brutality and racism.
In that council meeting, Councilmem
ber Joyce Sheperd, chair of the Public
Safety and Legal Administration Com
mittee, said the Bottoms administration
had asked for the ordinance to return to
the committee for further review and re
search. Sheperd also cited the context of
the ongoing protests. Councilmember
Howard Shook said the Law Department
had expressed concerns about the ordi
nance.
When the ordinance returned to the
council for a vote Aug. 3, the language bar
ring photos, videos and broadcasts was
gone. Hillis told the council that deletion
was due to concerns from the public and
councilmembers, and that the revisions
were made in consultation with the ad
ministration. The “participant” definition
was tweaked to emphasize that offenders
must be “knowingly” and “actively” join
ing the race. And a new line appeared: “For
the purposes of this section, a person who
is a mere bystander, passerby, or observer
not aware of the illegal activity shall not
be deemed a participant.”
The Law Department had more bad
news for Hillis. References to drivers were
cut because existing state law already cov
ered them. Another provision requiring
that seized race cars be impounded for 30
days or until the driver’s case was adju
dicated was likely unlawful, Law Depart
ment attorneys told the council. Coun
cilmember Carla Smith pleaded for the
clause to remain as “the only tooth in this
legislation” and it did, but with additional
language that the impounding period can
be up to the maximum under state law —
which, the city attorneys said, is never 30
days or the period of adjudication.
The language prohibiting the organiza
tion of a race remained intact, also with
a “knowingly” added. The other main
change was setting a minimum fine of
$1,000 instead of a lower range, which is
limited by state law; the ordinance also al
lows for up to 6 months in jail.
Editor’s note: Dan Grossman previously rep
resented this reporter in an unrelated legal
case.
SPECIAL
An Atlanta Police Department photo of a car being impounded during
a multi-agency crackdown on street racing in Atlanta in May 2020.
