Folsom police step up enforcement on reckless riding, illegal e-motorcycles

Folsom police are investigating an incident after they say a teen riding an illegal electric motorcycle threw an object through a car window at the Palladio Shopping Center, shattering the windshield.

It comes as Folsom police say they're stepping up enforcement on reckless riding and illegal electric vehicles after a lot of complaints from the community.

"The education component has kind of happened, but what we're going towards right now is more enforcement," said Folsom police commander Andrew Bates. "As this uptick has occurred, we have dedicated officers; they're going to be out writing tickets for violations that occur."

Most e-bikes are legal for kids and have functional pedals, while electric motorcycles have foot pegs, can reach much higher speeds and are not legal to ride on public streets, sidewalks or bike paths.

But police say they've seen both types of vehicles involved in dangerous behavior, weaving through traffic, popping wheelies through intersections and riding where they shouldn't.

"We want to make sure they're following the rules of the road and that they have an appreciation that if they're riding on the roadway next to a car, suddenly zipping out into traffic or turning into a traffic lane could result in serious injury or death for them. We don't want to see that happen," Bates said.

But more recently, police say the problem has gone beyond reckless riding.

"They're more aggressive than just kids riding," said a Roseville mother. "I have never heard of such aggressive behavior."

It's a concern parents say they're seeing in other communities, too.

"It's just concerning because they're riding in the middle of the road. Not wearing helmets," the mother said.

She hopes the incident serves as a wake-up call, not just for the teens riding recklessly, but for their parents as well.

"Do they know? I don't know if they know where their kids are. I would be so upset if that was my child," the woman said.

In some cases, riders may receive a citation or even have their vehicle impounded.

Meanwhile, Folsom police said they impounded the e-motorcycle in that vandalism case and sent the case to the district attorney's office for possible criminal charges.