Freedom of association denied in Ventura Cty

[Major Variola (ret)]

(Note that this *is* political as the Fairgrounds are State property)


Dress Code Keeps 9 Hells Angels Out of Fair in Ventura
Security: The new policy is enforced after biker club members refuse to
remove vests marked with group's insignia. Their leader says he will
sue.

                     By TRACY WILSON and HOLLY J.
                     WOLCOTT, TIMES STAFF WRITERS

                     Nine Hells Angels were denied entry to the
                     Ventura County Fair on Wednesday evening after
                     refusing to remove black leather vests
                     emblazoned with the trademark winged skull of
                     their motorcycle club.

                     Stopped at a side entrance, the bikers were told
                     by a security guard their clothing violated a fair
                     policy that bans gang attire.

                     The guard told George Christie Jr., president of
                     the Ventura Hells Angels chapter, and his
                     associates that they would have to remove any
                     clothing bearing the name of their group to enter
                     the fairgrounds.

                     "I want to exercise my rights as a United States
                     citizen," Christie responded. Holding up two
                     tickets, for himself and the 9 1/2-year-old
                     daughter of his fiancee, Christie asked, "You will
                     not accept these tickets?"

                     Security guard Mike Priester then handed
                     Christie a copy of the fair's dress code policy and

                     again told him he could not come through the gate
                     unless he removed the clothing bearing the Angels
                     insignia.

                     As he walked away from the fairgrounds, Christie
called the policy
                     unconstitutional and said he will file a lawsuit
challenging it.

                     "I take offense," he said. "We are not a street
gang, we are a motorcycle
                     club.... We are going to seek legal action."

                     Ventura attorney Kay Duffy, who had walked with the
Hells Angels and a
                     few of their family members from the group's nearby
clubhouse to the
                     fairgrounds, said she had hoped fair organizers
would back down from the
                     policy and allow the Angels inside.

                     "The next step is the court system," she said.

                     Fair spokesman Devlin Raley said organizers had no
choice but to turn
                     Christie and the others away.

                     The dress policy aims to create a safe atmosphere
for families to enjoy the
                     fair, said Raley, adding that it will be enforced
during the 12-day fair that
                     began Wednesday.

                     "They chose not to comply with the dress code. It
was a challenge of the
                     policy and the policy was enforced," Raley said,
adding that the conversation
                     with the Angels at the gate was peaceful.

                     Concerned about gang violence, the fair board
recently approved a tighter
                     policy on gang attire. The policy specifically
prohibits anyone wearing
                     clothing, visible tattoos or other articles bearing
the name or insignia of a
                     criminal street gang from entering the fairgrounds.

                     It does not ban the wearing of specific colors or
sports team logos unless
                     clothing has been altered to symbolize a gang.

                     "This doesn't prevent anyone from coming to the
fair," Ventura Police Lt.
                     Ken Corney said this week. "You just can't be
wearing gang attire."

                     The policy identifies 27 local groups as criminal
street gangs--including the
                     Hells Angels and rival Mongols motorcycle clubs.

                     Christie and lawyers representing the Hells Angels
contend there is no
                     evidence the club meets the legal definition of a
criminal street gang.

                     But police say recent convictions stemming from a
massive
                     drug-and-racketeering case involving the Hells
Angels prompted law
                     enforcement officials to deem the organization a
criminal street gang.

                     Corney said revisions to the fair's decade-old
dress code were prompted by
                     a recent appellate court decision in which justices
in Northern California
                     found a similar dress code unconstitutional. The
ruling stemmed from a
                     lawsuit filed by a Hells Angels member who was
denied entry to the Sonoma
                     County Fair after refusing to remove a vest
emblazoned with the club name.
                     The appellate court found the dress code vague and
overbroad.

                     Unlike the Sonoma decision, Ventura lawyers and
police say the new policy
                     is specific and are confident it would withstand a
legal challenge.