Linton Police Chief Troy Jerrell says this is a good time to review some relevant laws on bicycles, mopeds and ATVs (All-Terrain Vehicles).

Jerrell said the state laws that cover the requirements concerning bicycles, motorized bicycles or mopeds and all-terrain vehicles are found in Indiana Code 9-21-11 and 14-16.

The law says a motorized bicycle may not be operated under any of the following conditions: By a person less than 15 years of age; by a person who has not obtained an identification card or driver's license by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles; on an interstate highway or a sidewalk; at a speed greater than 25 mph.

The law on motorized bicycles also says a person less than 18 years of age who operates or rides a motorized bicycle on a street or highway shall wear protective headgear meeting the minimum requirements established by the USDOT, and they shall wear protective glasses, goggles or a transparent face shield.

Those who violate these statues on motorized bicycles commit a class C infraction.

The laws on ATVs say ATVs and snowmobiles may not be operated on public property unless they are registered and an individual may not operate a vehicle required to be registered upon a public highway, street, or rights-of-way or on a public or private parking lot not specifically designed for the use of vehicles. There are some exceptions to this statute which can be found in Indiana Code 14-16-1-20.

Other rules covered under these statues say that an individual under 14 years of age may not operate a vehicle without immediate supervision of an individual at least 18 years of age, except on land owned or under the control of the individual or the individual's parent or legal guardian. A vehicle may not be used to hunt, pursue, worry or kill a wild bird or a domestic or wild animal and a vehicle may not be operated between sunset and sunrise unless the vehicle has at least one headlight and one taillight.

Still more: a vehicle may not be operated at any time unless the vehicle has adequate brakes capable of producing deceleration at 14 feet per second on level ground at a speed of 20 miles per hour. An individual shall not operate a vehicle at a rate of speed greater than is reasonable and proper having due regard for existing conditions or in a manner that unnecessarily endangers the person or property of another.

An individual may not operate these vehicles while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or illegal narcotics/habit forming depressants or stimulants.

An individual shall not operate a vehicle during the hours 30 minutes after sunset to 30 minutes before sunrise without displaying a lighted headlight and taillight.

An individual shall not operate a vehicle unless the vehicle is equipped with a muffler in good working order and in constant operation to prevent excessive or unusual noise and annoying smoke.

An individual shall not operate a vehicle within 100 feet of a dwelling between midnight and 6 a.m. except on the individual's own property or property under the individual's control or as an invited guest.

An individual shall not operate a vehicle on any property without consent of the landowner or tenant, on or across a cemetery or burial ground or on a railroad track or railroad right-of-way.

A person who violates the above statues commits a class C infraction or a class B misdemeanor.

For more information on ATVs or ORVs (Off-Road Vehicles), there's a handbook that can be downloaded from the Internet at http://www.offroad-ed.com/in/handbook/pdf_index.ht...

         LOCK YOUR VEHICLE

 

Take your keys with you and lock your vehicle.

This common sense advice from Linton Police Chief Troy Jerrell was issued since police have worked a number of burglary and theft incidents this spring involving unlocked vehicles.

"Whether you are parking your car overnight, making a quick trip into a store, or even just running into a gas station, lock your car and don't ever leave the keys in the ignition," said Jerrell.

This past weekend, officers worked two incidents that might have been prevented if keys had been removed from the ignition and the vehicles locked.

Early last Friday, a Linton resident reported several items had been stolen from her Chevy Blazer that had been parked overnight in a parking lot at Glenburn.

Clothes left inside the vehicle had been ruffled up and a cell phone was missing. Two containers of prescription medication, Loritab and Ibuprofen, were missing as well. The thief also took a set of house keys for a residence.

At the time of the theft, the keys had been left hanging in the ignition.

On Sunday afternoon, a Bloomfield resident who had parked his Chevy pickup truck in the 100 block of East Vincennes Street reported it as stolen around 1:30 p.m.

A number of items were in the truck and the tool box on the back. A Remington rifle was under the back seat of the extended cab and there was ammunition on the seat.

At the time of the theft, the keys had been left hanging in the ignition.

The truck was found early Monday morning in a ditch.

Jerrell says with warmer weather, more people are out walking around so we really need to be paying attention.

"Every spring and summer, we get hit with a string of burglaries involving things inside cars and the cars too. Typically what they'll do is just walk down a row of vehicles and flip the door handles to see if any of them will open. If they do, they'll hop in and take cell phones, CDs, anything they can grab hold of and sometimes they take the vehicle as well," said Jerrell.

There have been cases involving a civil suit, a domestic dispute or a divorce when a person has the keys and takes the vehicle or items inside without permission but Jerrell says vehicles are not usually stolen without keys.

"Rarely is there a case where a window is broken into or there has been a forced entry gained into the vehicle. I can only remember one time, maybe two, this has happened the whole time I've worked here," said Jerrell.

Newer model cars are much harder to break into and to steal, according to Jerrell.

"It takes more knowledge to break into these newer model cars. It's rare when one is broken into, hot-wired and driven away," said Jerrell.

To guard against being a victim of a theft of a vehicle or its contents, Jerrell says the most important deterrent is to always take the keys and lock the car.