Page 15 - 2025 May June Magazine

25 Years of STURGIS?
BY ANTONI FROEHLING
STurgis '25
Every year one, two or twenty of us write about our travels.
Since I’ve been around for a long time, I’ve written a time
or two. In fact, I think I’ve even written about Sturgis be-
fore. After all, I’ve been there 25 times over the years. I’ve been
with friends, new acquaintances, lawyers, cops, judges, outlaws,
other motorcycle enthusiasts and folks that barely knew how to
hang on to the handlebars. I’ve been alone, with girlfriends and
wives, even one who slept on the back of my bike almost all the
way there, and back, too.
For the uninitiated, ‘Sturgis’ refers to the annual motorcycle
rally held at Sturgis, South Dakota, home of Kristi Noem,
which almost made me stop going. Sturgis is like homecoming
for motorcycle enthusiasts, especially the Harley types, which
I’ve been one since 1966, when I got my first, a 1943 Flathead I
bought for ten bucks, before impound fees and before a license.
If you like motorcycles, it’s worth going at least once. It’s like
being a rodeo fan and going to the Fort Worth ‘Fat Stock’ Show.
You cram about half a million people into a town the size of
downtown Puyallup, with weather that can be freezing, boiling
or pouring rain. I’ve had hail tear holes in my trailer and seen
people need stitches from some nearly the size of baseballs.
What could go wrong? The event which lasts about ten days in
the beginning of August generates something like $800 million
for the state in revenue. They say about 1.4 million in taxes, but
that’s BS. Here’s what they miss...
One huge source of revenue is, or was, civil forfeiture. I
checked, and last year one seizure alone netted them about
$30 grand. The beat goes on… I’ve been a victim, so I know.
If you are stopped for any reason, and I’ve been stopped going
2 mph over the limit, your vehicle is often searched and, if it
contains contraband of any sort, its seized. We used to take
our racing equipment there in an old school bus. One time we
were stopped going down the freeway because one young man
was, ahem…peeing out the door…pulled over, searched and a
wee bit of contraband was found. No PC for the search, mind
you, but everything was seized in a civil forfeiture proceeding:
race bike, street bikes $2,000 cash, a couple of guns and even
a ballistic vest (we wear them to race, as we are required to)
and the bus. The standard deal on a forfeiture in South Dakota
at that time was... you show up at their office and you can buy
back your item for ½ its value, as they determine the value. A
kid in line in front of me wanted to buy back his old Honda
Civic, because his concert tickets were inside. As I was arguing
with the AG at the temporary office, it got quite heated and she
quoted me a final price in the thousands, even though every-
one in the state knew it was an unlawful search and seizure.
As we were finishing, she whispered in my ear “And I want a
thousand bucks from your pocket ass**le”. That was Sturgis.
The best part was that the assistant AG helping out was a guy
named Ken Cash of all things. I wrote a story about that deal
and a few months later I got a call at my office. “Hi…this is Ken
Cash…why’d you lie about me in that article?” “Hell Ken, why’d
you steal my money?” Ask anyone that’s been there a few times
and you’ll get a lot of stories. As lawyers, most will make you
cringe. The courts are open like 18 hours a day and lawyers sit
in the jury box. If a defendant wants a lawyer, they get the next
one in line and, for a few bucks, you can chat with one. If you
want to hire one, it costs more. If you need one to come back
later, the spigot is open. They have pretty good reciprocity too
in case you need to earn a few bucks on vacation. If you happen
to get in a wreck or pulled over while driving drunk, they don’t
put you in jail, they PR you…and impound your bike…so
they don’t have to pay your hospital bill. But they know you’re
coming back, because they have your bike. Now granted, some
of those rules are from a few years ago, but you get the idea
how the place works. I read that they still have some strange
rules, like not letting you see a lawyer until AFTER your initial
appearance before a judge. Constitution? What constitution?
The idea is that they scare enough people into pleading to the
first offer that they save court time... and money for public
defenders.
I was sitting in a local store used by some folks from Arizona
for the week. I happened to be there right at the beginning of
the rally. I was chatting with the owner when a fellow came in
and bought an oil filter. As the transaction was completed, out
came several sets of cuffs and badges and the owner was cuffed
and hauled out the door while his 14 yr. old daughter looked on
in tears. The crime: failing to obtain his annual business license,
which at the time was a near capital offense in South Dakota.
Continued on next page.
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