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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Huckleberries Online

Endangered: Helmetless Bikers

In this 2012 SR file photo, Spokane Police Department officers Chris Conrath, left and Micah Prim investigate a car verses motorcycle accident in the intersection of 21st Avenue and Lincoln Street. (Colin Mulvany / SR file photo)
In this 2012 SR file photo, Spokane Police Department officers Chris Conrath, left and Micah Prim investigate a car verses motorcycle accident in the intersection of 21st Avenue and Lincoln Street. (Colin Mulvany / SR file photo)

Lael Henterly of the Inlander begins a discussion of helmet laws in Washington and Idaho by mentioning a crash between motorcycles in Post Falls Monday night:

It was pitch black on the stretch of Post Falls roadway when Jeremy Rogers and Aaron Cameron mounted their dirt bikes shortly after 1am Monday morning. The two had been drinking — IPA beers for Rogers and martinis for Cameron — and their motorcycles didn’t have headlights nor they helmets. A few moments later, neighbors heard a colossal crash and ran outside to find shoes and motorcycle parts strewn across the roadway. The pair had crashed into one another head on as they raced up and down the hill. Both men were injured, with Cameron’s life-threatening head injury so serious he was transported to Seattle by helicopter. In his report, Post Falls Police Officer Daniel Koontz notes the safety violations: lack of headlights, driving under the influence. But the helmets that could have prevented the head injury? Not required by law in Idaho. More here.

Question: Should Idaho impose helmet laws for motorcyclists?



D.F. Oliveria
D.F. (Dave) Oliveria joined The Spokesman-Review in 1984. He currently is a columnist and compiles the Huckleberries Online blog and writes about North Idaho in his Huckleberries column.

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