The Lair

My time in Jail- A memoir

So growing up in CA riding dirt bikes, I really missed being on two wheels and going fast. I was stationed in Norfolk, VA at the time, and decided I wanted to get a street bike. I already had my motorcycle license endorsement, so I started shopping around. I found a Kawasaki ZX-6R (636cc) that the guy had previously taken on the track, so it was a sweet set-up. It was dropped 2" in the front, steering stabilizer, SS brake lines, power commander, etc. The bike was tuned on the dyno, and put out 126 HP to the rear wheel. Needless to say, it was fast.

Well one day, I decided to go for a ride on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. For anyone unfamiliar, it's a 23 mile bridge that's got tolls on each side, 55 mph speed limit, and costs around $15 to cross it.






I'm cruising along, and think to myself "Hey, I've been 140 mph before. Let's go 150 mph and see how that feels." Traffic was lite, and my GoPro was on my gas tank recording. I get up to 150 (that was exhilarating) and slow down to 90-100 and cruise along, because that feels like a normal speed now. I pass a group of bikers on Harleys and give them a wave as I pass, happy that everything went well. At this point, I'm about 8 miles into the bridge, and see a cop going the opposite direction, but don't think anything of it. I'm going a normal speed, right? Wrong.

Fast forward 15 minutes when I get off the bridge portion, but I'm still within the toll stations. There's a cop sitting in the center median, and as soon as I round the corner going ~85 mph, he turns on his lights, flips a U turn in front of me, and signals me to pull over. I do, and immediately turn off my bike and start taking off my helmet to let him know I don't plan on running. He says "You were going mighty fast on the bridge back there! My partner saw you going triple digits!" Well I start shitting bricks, because I knew I was busted. The cop proceeds to tell me how my license will probably be suspended, etc. while we wait for the first cop to show up.

The cop shows up, and at this point there's 4 cop cars there. I'm thinking "Man I'm fucked, because my GoPro was recording everything." He mentions how he saw me going "close to 100" and at that point I knew he saw me AFTER I had already slowed down. Not so bad, right? I readily admit that "Yup, I was only going 90-100mph". I had no idea whether or not they could take my GoPro if I was a dick and claimed to only be going 55 mph, which is why I readily admitted what I did.

After some deliberation, the two cops come back and tell me they're gonna take it easy on me. They could have gotten me with two separate counts of reckless driving (anything over 80 mph is automatic reckless in VA), taken me away in cuffs, and impounded my bike. Instead they gave me one "general reckless driving" and released me on my own recognizance with a court date a month later.

Fast forward to my court date. I'm there in my dress whites, with my Navy representative and my lawyer. We're watching the judge act cool with everyone, and reducing charges on damn near everything. I'm feeling pretty good at this point. We get up in front of the judge and my attorney presents our case. The judge leans back, takes off his glasses and asks the cops, "How fast was he going?" Cop: "He admitted to going 90-100mph" Judge: "100mph?!?! You hit a pebble going that fast and you crash and die!!!!"

The attorney proceeds to try and reason with the judge, but he wasn't having any of it. He says "Right now I'm just deciding how long I want to send you away for." My heart sinks and head drops. I'm so fucked.

I ended up paying $500 for my attorney, $500 in fines and court fees, and spend 3 days in jail. That was terrible, and I don't plan on ever going back there. The food was terrible, and my cellmate had tear drop tattoos. Sold my bike, and haven't been back on one since.

 

Damn what a story! I thinks you've been lucky tho! You eere going so fast! That is one reason I don't really want a bike, to easy to go fast... my atv is a 800cc and was way too fast and powerful when I bought it. Now, it feels slow... i could take more, but should not. If I ever get myself a bike it would be maximum 400cc, semi trail kind so I can go on the dirt. If not, i don't want it!

 

Agreed! Those are so comfortable as well. @AR15xAR10 has one, and takes it everywhere.

 

This story is cool, depressing and educational all at once. Glad to know you have slowed down and have taken to abusing trails instead of bridges.

Did you get any prison ink while you were there? Tear drops, 3 points, swords, dragons ect

 

I can't say I did! I did read Jurassic park all in one day though. There was nothing else to do. Although I DID get the email of one of my cell mates.....I never emailed him though.

 

Do you still have it? If you do try emailing him now. It would be intresting to know if he continued with the life of crime

 

No, I purposefully lost that email before I ever even left. He wasn't too horrible a person though, just didn't pay child support. I was on the side of jail with all misdemeanor guys, so they were tame for the most part.

 

You don't speed on Virginia soil Randy. The whole world knows that. Or the eastern half of Maryland for that matter

 

I am WELL aware of that now

 

Fucking, do it.

 

<3

 

Virginia has some of the harshest driving laws in the country, and they enforce those MFers. When I moved back from Louisiana (riding a ZX6, too), I got 3 tickets in 3 months before that sunk in. Also, working in the court system, I know that Virginia harshly punishes people for DWIs too.

 

I knew a couple people that got DUIs and man, did they get hosed. It's for the best though, as drinking and driving is moronic.

 

i wish the whole country took that one as seriously

 

Pretty safe to say that the judge saved your life.. lesson learned. I would have been shitting bricks as well though.

A friend just got his license back after a dwi. He lost it for over a year and just started working. Trying to help him out by giving him some work now that he can drive. I remember going to Maryland twice.. got a ticket both times. No dwi though.

 

Agreed. When it was all said and done, I got pretty lucky. It was just harsh enough to make me realize "Hey, I probably shouldn't do this anymore." whereas if I had gotten a break, I probably would have kept the bike and who knows if I'd be here today.

 

Wise decision. You wouldnt want that kind of friends lurking around.

Sexy bike!

My area of Texas is literally littered with state troopers. You will run into one every 1/2 to 1 mile off the expressway that runs parallel to the border. Keeps everyone here looking at the needle. I did get a "warning" a couple of weeks ago while driving to Austin. I was on my way to fly out and was doing 92mph. Trooper pulled me over and had a laugh when he saw a radar detector on the windshield. Asked a few questions and gave me a warning. In the print out the "recorded speed" had a big X instead of a number. Guess I got lucky.

I would be perfectly ok with this. As a matter of fact, if it required a vote I would vote for it. Nothing good ever comes out of driving while intoxicated

 

Completely agree. Absolutely no excuse for it except stupidity.

 

I'm on the opposite side of that spectrum. I met that one cop that every motorcyclist fears, the one that hates motorcycles. He gave me a written warning for reckless driving and public endangerment for my front wheel being about 8-10" off the ground and going 35 in a 25. But he told me, if he ever sees me doing it again, he'd throw the book at me. I thanked him. I've seen him since and he's just given me "that look" and nodded.

Not going to say i haven't done it since, but I don't do it on the city streets. You take that shit to the farm lands, back roads, and woods. No way I could get stopped if a kid jumped out in front of me, a car pulled out, or if i dumped myself off the back and the bike went hurdling into people or parked cars. Its just not worth it. All these 12oclock boys on stolen bikes make people like me look like the asshole. That i can't stand. They need to get off the streets.

thx m8