Proposed law would require helmets for all Portland skaters
PORTLAND, Ore. - Sharon Hennessey, who lives in Portland's West Hills, has a strict rule for her kids when they head out the door to ride their scooters and skateboards: wear a helmet, no exceptions.
Now, a blanket ordinance that would require all skaters in Portland do the same is making its way through Portland's City Hall.
The proposed ordinance, which is currently being developed by a new committee, is in response to complaints from West Hills residents regarding the latest trend by skaters who roll down the steep and curving roads of Portland's West Hills at speeds equal to or even faster than automobile traffic.
Hennessy said there's been several crashes on her street and her husband has even taken skaters to the hospital on several occasions. The ordinance would affect skaters of any age.
Some homeowners told KATU News they support the ordinance because they are afraid of hitting a skater while driving around the sharp and sometimes blind corners near their homes.
"They lay down on longboards and go right through the stop sign," Hennessey said. "Especially with the pitch and grade of the street, if they hit a rock ... We've had an accident - we've had several accidents. We've picked several of them up off the street.”
Getting skaters to comply with the ordinance may be a tough sell. One man riding at a local skate park without a helmet said he had no plans on complying with the ordinance.
"It's not gonna work. I'm not gonna obey it anyway," Max Watson said.
Colette Peterson, a skater at the same park, who was not wearing a helmet, said she supported helmet use but not laws mandating it.
“I think that wearing a helmet is a good idea, but I think it should be a personal choice,” she said.
Regardless of any city law, at the Hennessey house it’s mom’s law that really counts.
“I’m not allowed to leave the house without the helmet,” said 9-year-old Cliff. “Same with my brother.
The committee met once again on Wednesday to discuss the idea. They will send a full proposal to the city council next week.
Why don't they just propose a law that everyone has to wear a helmet if they're outside of their house.
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Well, it would help politicians for certain. It would make it a log harder for them to stick their heads up their as..um, uh, errr...bestos-filled stove-pipes. Yeah, that's it. Asbestos-filled stovepipes.
Sure the cops will enforce it for awhile but it will be at all the skateparks not where the issue started and the current laws weren't enforced. New laws aren't the answers to our problems common sense and enforcing the laws currently on the books is the answer to this problem. This is a failure on the police's part by not ticketing the guys running the stop signs there would not be a problem if they know they are going to be stopped for running a stop sign or riding on the wrong side of the street. Waste of time and money for the city
Sounds like sammy is trying to raise more money for his long sleeve speedo wearing bicyclist buddies
I propose that every politician must wear one those helmets the disabled people have to wear.
Oh goody. Another law on the books that no one can, or even intends to, enforce. There is already a law requiring bike riders 16 and under to wear helmets. Notice how well that is working. The helmets are a good idea, and parents need to lead from the front on this, but a legal requirement would be a futile gesture.
 @MechanicÂ
Actually the law for 16 and under works pretty well. The law means high visibility to those who don't know any better and has parents taking seriously having their children wear them.
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I doubt many people get ticketed, but then again I saw a PPD car just yesterday nearly get hit by a red light runner and not light him up (that makes 5 this year)
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So I donât doubt any law crafted is more posture than substance.
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A very easy way to stop, or slow these 'speeders', just put a 1" high speed bump in critical spots just before intersections, or anywhere the kids are speeding or running stop signs. Cars will never notice them, and the kids will soon learn where they are. As for helmets...most parents either don't know what their kids are doing, or don't care...possibly the fine after injuries might help them think twice.
What's next? Knee and elbow pads? Brakes on skateboards and scooters? You cannot legislate common sense. Period. Why adopt another law that won't be enforced? When the boarders and scooter riders get tired of getting hurt they will either put on protective gear or find another way to spend their time. parents can make the rules for their children but the adults should be left to take care of themselves. This is not a government issue!
I like this part in the story"Â they are afraid of hitting a skater while driving around the sharp and sometimes blind corners near their homes. "They lay down on longboards and go right through the stop sign," Hennessey said. "Especially with the pitch and grade of the street, if they hit a rock ... We've had an accident - we've had several accidents. We've picked several of them up off the street.â; You get hit by a car while laying on a board going through a stop sign faster then traffic. I think the Helmet is the least of you're problems. Good luck enforcing this one. I see a the city needing to hire more Officer's to enforce all these new laws.
Actually this law will be enforced, after the fact of course. In other words if you or your child gets hurt while skating, then you will be fined. The nanny state at work.
I really doubt it will be enforced at all. After a crash that kills a child, parents are almost never prosecuted for failing to have the kid in a proper car seat.
Well, Mr. (?) Watson, you don't have to wear a helmet. Just don't expect taxpayers to foot your medical bills or your legal fees when you try to sue the city for your stupidity. Just remember the city's legal fund is reserved for people who sue the police that shoot punks who desreve it.
Once the skateboarders attain a certain speed, then those puny little helmets aren't going to do much good if they plow into a vehicle or a structure. All the laws and "revised statutes" will not protect someone from the laws of physics; that is an absolute given. Double the speed, quadruple the potential energy. Score: Darwin 7, shumdit 0.
Leave it to the leaders in Portland to pass a law to protect skaters from getting hurt as the skaters race down hills and run stop sings instead of citing them for a moving violation. If this passes then cops won't be enforcing the helmet law any more than they are enforcing the traffic laws.
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It baffles the mind that people actually come up with stupid stuff like this.
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@RalphCramden ......it isn't people Ralph. It's the bureaucrats in Portland government who have nothing better to do. Don't confuse them with real people! LOL
 @Rob C Â
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For sure. Thinking things through is not a skill set that politicians have.
 @travelingsages  @cpt.icemanÂ
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The kids ignore the stop signs and other traffic laws. They will ignore the helmet law also.
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It always amazes me that government doesn't enforce existing laws and the answer to fixing a problem is to make more laws....that they won't enforce.
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Not enforcing existing laws makes all laws a joke.
 @cpt.iceman I agree. Enforce the current speed laws and stop sign laws. Having helmets on also wouldn't hurt but start with enforcing the current traffic laws.Â
Well Said RalphCramden!!Well Said!!!
 @cpt.icemanÂ
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For sure. It's like gun free zones that only honest law abiding citizens will obey.
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Stupid people make stupid laws and politicians are among the elite of the stupid.
I allways wonder how they come up with these things. It's like stupid warning lables. #1 A Fan Belt, Warning Shut Off Car before installing,#2 Blow Dryer, Do not use in shower or Bathtub, Now look at a couple if Dumb Laws #1 Florida,, It is Illegal for a Female to sky dive on Sundays. #2 Baltimore, It is illegal to take a lion to the movies.  It makes me wonder why we are paying these people to think up stupid things like these.I think for every New Law they should Repeal 2 Old or stupid Laws.
@RalphCramden .......yup......cause and effect. Consequences.......all concepts lost on most city staffs.
I hear Randy Leonard has invented a new Skateboarding helmet.
@xilef regnu ......and the City will sell it and us the proceeds for more porta potties and bike lanes !
Another case of some not having any common sense.
If they get hurt doing something stupid like blasting through a stop sign, just pick them up out of the middle of the street, and lay them next to the curb. People of all ages need to take responsibility for their actions.
What a joke,apparently they are trying to pass everything stupid before they vacate the premises.What about some laws for the Nazi bicycle riders,registration,insurance,might have about as much chance of policing them as this.
Here we go again with another attempt at writting a law that common sense should cover..... Why is it everytime some stupid person hurts themselves doing what is obviously a dangerous act, our politicians think we need a new law to correct that and which also ends up punishing 99.9% of the people that don't do such stupid acts in the first place? Let the skater decide if they are 18 or older. If younger then it's the parents job not the city's! At this rate the city is going to be passing a law that will tell us how to wipe after we defecate.....
Wow, a law? Don't the people in the West Hills have anything better to do with their time? With all of the gang shootings, flash mobbing, robberies, etc. happening in the city, enforcing helmets on skateboarders is the last thing I want my taxpayer money spent on. Most sports helmets aren't really intended for use if you risk a collision with a car. If they are skating "at speeds equal to or even faster than automobile traffic", I wouldn't put a lot of faith in those helmets. Perhaps the ordinance should require a DOT approved full motorcycle helmet (when will someone create a sarcasm font!). From my observations participating in sports where some choose to wear them, helmets often give people a false sense of security and can encourage them to take risks they normally wouldn't.
How has Mankind, nay, Life on Planet Earth managed to be around this long without Portland keeping us Safe?
 @Lo Pan The City of Portland is really disturbing the natural order of things by allowing idiots to live long enough to propagate.
Why stop there? How about helmet for people inside cars?
@water_skipper and roll bars.
How about Neck Braces to reduce whiplash?
 @water_skipper Ooo! And helmets in bed! And while watching television! Great idea!!! ;-)
"I'm not going to obey it anyway", says Max Watson. Â Well, Max...one good spill and you're going to get crayons for Christmas for the rest of your life.
 @Heckofadeal Then he could stick one up his nose and be like Homer Simpson!
A couple of thoughts come to mind here....
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1) The city council has obviously seen a potential revenue source in the cities skateboarders. Laws are enforced, largely, by fines when disobeyed. Rather than putting speed bumps, or grinding some horizontal ruts in the 'big hills' (which would cost the city money), we can just pass a law and rake in some coin handing out tickets.
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BTW.... I'm really curious if you could effectively enforce such an ordinance on private property with adult riders? If I have a half-pipe in my backyard.... but, I digress...
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2) By en large, all this law will do is give police officers yet another (in an ever lengthening list) of reasons to stop and cite a private citizen. Just as with bicycle helmet laws, it's pretty rare that they are used as a primary reason for a apprehension/detention. If someone is riding outside the safe limits of ANY type of vehicle, careless/reckless riding would be a more appropriate citation. Telling an adult they 'have' to wear a helmet to bike or skate is just the next slide on the road to Moscow on the Willamette.
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If a minor does it, cite the parents AND the child. If an adult wants to hurry their nomination for the Darwin awards, so be it.
Don't make them wear helmets -- make them sign a contract that their mothers won't be allowed to litter our city with their roadside memorials when the stunt fails and they crack their skulls open. http://www.katu.com/news/local/165671866.html
Typical liberal city....They want to control every little thing someone does.
 @sortbait That's an anal city, not a liberal city.
 @sortbait I know, right?! Like your uterus or who you can marry!Â
 @GetOverYourself  @sortbait Spare me. This is what liberals do. They force endless regulations on people, businesses etc. Who gives a ratsass about your uterus or what you do with it.
@Rob C Liberals gave the five day work week. Liberals gave you the Clean Water Act. Liberals gave you child labor laws preventing children from working in mines, mills and factories. Liberals gave you safe working conditions. If you don't like it, you can always give it back. You're welcome.
Liberals give you your freedoms. "give you" ?? "give you" ? Well let me get down on my knees and thank them for their benevolence !!
 @Mikey  @molotovmouse  @sortbait Molotovmouse not understand! Get in way of impotent rage!
 @molotovmouse  @GetOverYourself  @sortbait No, it's not what liberals do. It's what anal-retentive, micro-managing, power-starved bureaucrats do. Liberals are people who give you your freedoms, like the Founding Fathers of our nation.
 @molotovmouse  @sortbait Said the person who will never get pregnant from a rape or ever. Â
Why don't they just put a speed bump or two on that street?
Darwin got it right.
"Getting skaters to comply with the ordinance may be a tough sell. One man riding at a local skate park without a helmet said he had no plans on complying with the ordinance."
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That is the problem right there. If you go to a skate park all the little kids will have helmets on. Then the 22 year old punk that they all look up to is flying around without a shirt or any type of safety gear. If they won't lead by example then maybe it is time to not give them the choice.
 @2012 Hope and Change Actually, that's the time you "grow a pair" and be a parent instead of some milquetoast who's afraid of damaging their child's future by disciplining them.
 @2012 Hope and Change Or you could just move back to the Soviet Union where you belong, and worry about the safety issues THERE. I hear mandatory helmets would be helpful for passengers on Aeroflot - although personally I think parachutes would be more helpful. And maybe do something about the government's use of radioactive materials for assassinations while you're at it.
I can tell you are a bright one. Keep it up. I'll just keep paying taxes so losers like you can spawn more losers. Maybe you won't have a helmet on next time you fall and will save me some money.
 @mine9  @2012 Hope and Change Uhhh...  there is no longer a Soviet Union. Try to keep up.