House Engrossed

State of Arizona House of Representatives Fifty-fourth Legislature First Regular Session 2019

HOUSE MEMORIAL 2002

 

A MEMORIAL

 

promoting awareness of motorcycle profiling and encouraging law enforcement officials to collaborate and communicate with the motorcycle community to prevent profiling.

 

 

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

 

To the law enforcement agencies of Arizona:

Your memorialist respectfully represents:

Whereas, motorcycle ridership in Arizona continues to increase over time with registrations growing from 138,000 in 2009 to over 325,000 in 2018; and

Whereas, as of August 2016, the ongoing National Motorcycle Profiling Survey, conducted by the Motorcycle Profiling Project, found that approximately one-half of the motorcyclists surveyed felt that they had been profiled by law enforcement at least once; and

Whereas, motorcycle profiling means law enforcement arbitrarily uses the fact that a person rides a motorcycle or wears motorcycle-related apparel as a factor in deciding to stop and question, take enforcement action against or arrest a person or search the person's vehicle with or without legal basis under the United States Constitution and the Arizona Constitution; and

Whereas, complaints surrounding motorcycle profiling have been cited in all fifteen Arizona counties; and

Whereas, nationwide protests to raise awareness and combat motorcycle profiling have been held in multiple states; and

Whereas, in 2011, the State of Washington enacted legislation requiring the criminal justice training commission to ensure that issues related to motorcycle profiling are addressed in basic law enforcement training and offered to in-service law enforcement officers in conjunction with existing training regarding profiling; and

Whereas, reported incidents of motorcycle profiling have dropped approximately ninety percent in the State of Washington since the 2011 legislation was signed into law; and

Whereas, in 2016, Maryland became the second state to pass a law addressing the issue of motorcycle profiling.

Wherefore your memorialist, the House of Representatives of the State of Arizona, prays:

1.  That law enforcement agencies in Arizona work to promote increased public awareness of the issue of motorcycle profiling.

2.  That law enforcement agencies in Arizona collaborate and communicate with the motorcycle community to end motorcycle profiling.

3.  That state and local law enforcement officials include a statement condemning motorcycle profiling in their written policies and training materials.

4.  That the Secretary of State transmit copies of this Memorial to the captain of each law enforcement agency in the State of Arizona.

 

 

PASSED BY THE HOUSE FEBRUARY 28, 2019.

 

FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE MARCH 1, 2019.