‘Anarchy in Our Streets’: Omaha Officials Looking to Crack Down on Street Racing Following String of Violent Incidents
by John Gage
Omaha officials announced this week they are looking for new ways to crack down on racing and late-night meet-ups on Omaha streets that have turned violent, including a recent assault on a police officer and takeover of a police cruiser during one of the illegal street takeovers.
“Unacceptable, this is anarchy in our streets,” Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson said in a Monday video discussing the incidents. “We’ve been putting zero tolerance on this crowd for a while, but it’s not enough. It’s not enough to arrest them and book them into jail, and impound their vehicle overnight. We need more tools from state and local policymakers.”
Hanson called for the city council to allow for mandatory car impounds upon arrest. Currently, a conviction is required to impound a vehicle for an extended period. The Omaha Police Officers Association shared Hanson’s video and called for lawmakers to “enact common-sense laws.”
Omaha Councilman Brinker Harding announced Thursday that he was introducing an ordinance to allow for cars to be impounded upon arrest and allow for extended hold periods. Under the proposal, a first-time offense would result in a 10-day hold by law enforcement, while repeat offenders would face harsher penalties and longer hold periods.
“Enough is enough,” Harding said in a statement. “Street racing and reckless driving aren’t harmless actions - they’re dangerous choices that put families, law enforcement, and innocent drivers at risk. While Nebraska law already treats reckless and willful reckless driving as serious offenses, repeat offenders are often back behind the wheel far too quickly.”
Hanson said the measure was needed because people were using their vehicles as “deadly instruments.” “We have to separate these criminals from the instruments that are putting our community at risk,” he said.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said that one has “a higher chance of being killed by a dangerous reckless driver than via intentional homicide.”
— John Gage is the executive editor of The Plains Sentinel.