4 arrested for huge motorcycle freeway stunt
WEST COVINA, Calif. (AP) — Four men — including the would-be groom — have been arrested for a marriage proposal stunt in which hundreds of motorcycles blocked a Southern California freeway, authorities said.
The prospective groom and three of his friends were all booked for investigation of misdemeanor public nuisance and participating in an unlawful assembly. The 24-year-old groom, Hector Martinez of Covina, also was booked for investigation of exhibition of speed, authorities said Tuesday.
As many as 250 motorcycles stopped on the eastbound Interstate 10 in West Covina on Jan. 27 so that Martinez could propose to his girlfriend. At one point, a bike sent up a cloud of pink smoke.
The stunt, which lasted about two minutes, was captured on video and went viral on the Internet.
"They made a spectacle of it," said Sgt. Kurt Stormes of the California Highway Patrol. "It's a slap in the face of law enforcement, in general."
Martinez's bride-to-be accepted the proposal. She is not facing any charges.
Stormes said investigators were able to find the men through social media.
"They bragged about it a lot," Stormes said of the bikers.
Three members of a rock band were each sentenced to probation last year and 35 days of community service for blocking a freeway to promote their music.
The prospective groom and three of his friends were all booked for investigation of misdemeanor public nuisance and participating in an unlawful assembly. The 24-year-old groom, Hector Martinez of Covina, also was booked for investigation of exhibition of speed, authorities said Tuesday.
As many as 250 motorcycles stopped on the eastbound Interstate 10 in West Covina on Jan. 27 so that Martinez could propose to his girlfriend. At one point, a bike sent up a cloud of pink smoke.
The stunt, which lasted about two minutes, was captured on video and went viral on the Internet.
"They made a spectacle of it," said Sgt. Kurt Stormes of the California Highway Patrol. "It's a slap in the face of law enforcement, in general."
Martinez's bride-to-be accepted the proposal. She is not facing any charges.
Stormes said investigators were able to find the men through social media.
"They bragged about it a lot," Stormes said of the bikers.
Three members of a rock band were each sentenced to probation last year and 35 days of community service for blocking a freeway to promote their music.
To Whom It May Concern, I am writing this letter on behalf of Hector Martinez. I have known Hector for the past 12 years, both as a student in my class and as a friend. Hector is an extraordinary young man. He has dedicated his energy into helping to make a difference in the lives of others. I have always referred to Hector as âmy big teddy bear.â Despite his intimidating size, Hector has a heart of gold. He has been an advocate for helping others. Since his time here at Sierra Vista, Hector has been on an innumerable number of Skid Row trips through Mrs. Edwardsâ Make a Difference Club. I am also highly involved with volunteer work at our school and have accompanied Hector and other students on these trips. Hector has been known to literally take his shirt off his back for a homeless person in need. Many people on Skid Row know Hector and look forward to his friendly face and donations of clothing and toiletries. I am not very big physically and Hector always tells Mrs. Edwards that he will be in my group and âprotectâ me while we walk the streets of Los Angeles handing out items. I personally nominated Hector for the highest award 8th grade year, Boysâ Citizenship Award. In my opinion, this is the highest honor a student at our school can achieve. Teachers vote for a student they believe made a difference on campus during his time here. This means being a leader, making friends with others who may struggle with relationships, setting a positive example, etc. Hector did receive this award and I remember crying the day he received it because I was so proud of him. I know that Hector is remorseful for his lack of judgment in choosing to propose the way he did. I am sure his intentions were good. After speaking to Hector, you will find that he is one of the sweetest, most respectful young man one could ever encounter. Please take my letter into consideration when determining the outcome of this situation. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Ms. /8 Grade Science
H
I have been stuck in Jams for much worse reasons. I'd forgive them and hope they live happily ever after - that's my romantic side. But I would also punish them so that we don't get copy cats. To the groom: Maintain the level of energy feeding your marriage ;-)
It's not any worse than all of the a**holes who drive 45 mph in the left hand lane and slow traffic everyday of the week...
Can I get that four minutes of my life back? Not sure what I was expecting...
Thats the most romantic spot he could find to propose is on the freeway?   Glad she said yes.
because the police in that city have nothing better to do? More than likely some ticked off cop who was stalled by 2 minuets getting a donuts shoved in his fat face.Â
That's incredibly rude of you. I know I'd be pissed if I got stuck in 45 minutes of traffic just so one jerk can propose to his girlfriend. Honestly, the California Highway Patrol went easy on them.Â
For as much as motorcycle riders talk about "sharing the road" and being aware of motorcyclists, this is completely stupid. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for unique proposals, but to think you own the entire highway and have a right to decide who goes through (or who doesn't in this case) is completely selfish and immature! They have to follow the rules of the road just as much as anyone else does.
They are giving bikers a bad name by disregarding the laws of the road. They talk about cars and trucks being "road hogs".... scoff!
That was awsome
He was not exhibiting speed. NO ONE WAS HURT ...just another trafick jam. in L.A.
@Russ Holding Still illegal to stop in the middle of the road unless it is an emergency. They should ticket the whole group for this stupid stunt.Â
This is a great one for all of us who Love our wives. I must say I enjoyed this very much and this proposal was the best.  I wish them well as America can do no better than this tribute he did for his wife to be. Good Luck..Thank You, it was very lifting.
They would be the first to scream bloody murder if cars did that.
That was dumb, and the music sucked too.
OMG! Way better proposal than I got. Heck where I live the police would have blocked the highway for it! (sorry, population of less than 700)
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LOL!
Dumb. Â And incredibly selfish. Â People on the other side could have had accidents because they couldn't help being looky-loos. Â With the rubber band effect on traffic, it would take more than a few minutes to clear the backup behind them. Â Just really dumb.
@Doxie "Dumb. Â And incredibly selfish."
Among some biker clubs, these guys were GENIUSES!!!
@JLS1950 @Doxie Yikes!
For all those stating they wouldn't have minded being held up in traffic for such a stunt. (YOUR ALL LIARS!).,   I also find it utterly irresponsible to commit to such a traffic infraction. While it did not cause an accident, IT COULD HAVE, and that was the point of the police, along with the fact that its against the law to purposefully impede traffic and so on.    I hope they confiscated their bikes too. Jerk offs.....
no wonder the rest of the world hates us. we really act like idiots.
@D the JÂ LOL, I'm pretty sure it has nothing to do with some guy holding up traffic for a marriage proposal...
@Susabelle @D the J Tip of the iceberg...
At least there was a reason the traffic was stopped. Most of our jams are due to drivers inability to merge and let people merge.
So 4 people are singled out while 250 others go free? The charges are pretty pathetic though. What's that? $200 fine and 3 months probation?
@Just a dude Yep. How do you identify the rest? Nobody else took off their helmets.
@slappywag @Just a dude Time for front tags on bikes?
Don't forget about conspiracy to disrupt vital national transportation infrastructure. Send 'em to Gitmo.
I'm so happy those four were arrested. It's too bad all of them couldn't be arrested. Their selfish actions stopped travelers and created a traffic hazard to all those behind the motorcyclists. This group of motorcyclists gives the rest of us a bad name.
Well I must say, I think they're being rather acceptable of that compare to how we would handle that. We wouldn't be so accepting.
Ok It backed up traffic for a while but no one was injured or killed and it was a cute idea- yes a bit more planning should have gone into it, maybe get everyone together for the ride then pulling into a large empty lot somewhere for the proposal would have been better, but ohwell- this is a moment the would be bride will never forget. Yes I can imagine those who were stuck behind them were unhappy but in the grand scheme of things how many of us are always happy and things always go right for us? These guys and gals weren't out to harm anyone and while I think the idiots doing wheelies and such need their heads examined it was all in good fun. I would rather be slowed down on the freeway for something like this than for the countless accidents each day caused by drivers using their cell phones.Â
@MomOf2Â I agree with you, especially considering they did this at 1:25 in the afternoon on a Sunday, not rush hour. Come on folks........where is your sense of romance? Of course this would never have been my idea of a romantic gesture... but apparently it worked for him.
@Susabelle @MomOf2 Yeah, getting rear-ended because a bunch of bikers have blocked the interstate is so romantic.
@Susabelle @Count_Screamalot @MomOf2 Nope, nobody was rear-ended, genius. But the possibility existed. But I guess it's OK that hundreds of people were put at risk and were delayed because some morons thought holding up traffic on an interstate was a "romantic."
@Count_Screamalot @Susabelle @MomOf2 I must have missed that part of the story, could you kindly point me in the direction of where it says someone was rear-ended?
@MomOf2Â I'm agree with you. Â It only took about 4 minutes and it wasn't done to harm anyone.
On the flip side, all of those who complain about it have more than likely done something much more dangerous on the freeway within the last 24 hours themselves, like not headchecking when changing lanes, failing to use signal, speeding, doing something other than driving while driving (like eating, writing on a notepad, skype video calling (yes I've seen this on the freeway).
It was ballsy, it was safe, and they'll remember it for a long time. Â
Why didn't they just have a good ol' Walmart wedding?
IQs of those participating=number of cylinders on the bike
dumber than dumb
That was retty cool! They did a nice job slowing traffc, they got their stuff done and got things movng again quicly. I thought it as petty cool. Not that I want every idiot wth a bike to try it, but it was a good one timer.
They put them in jail? Really? That just adds to thier story.
@Upgrayedd I bet this caused a traffic jam that lasted well after it was all over. Motorcycles get a bad rap thanks to selfish jackholes like these.
@Upgrayedd blocking a interstate is NOT cool
Losers, all. Probably not a high school diploma amongst them. Their kids don't have decent clothes or eat properly but they sure have nice scooters.
@Hagar Is it because they ride bikes or because they pulled a stunt like this that makes you think none of them finished high school and that their kids don't have decent clothes? Two of my older brothers ride sport bikes, and I could tell stories for hours about the crazy, stupid stunts they pulled (some would make this stunt seem like childs play) yet both have kids who are very well dressed, always have nice clothes and shoes that fit, name brand stuff even if that what the boys want,, none of the kids have ever gone hungry (which for anyone who has raised teen boys knows that can be a challenge lol) and both of my brothers have high school diplomas, oh yeah one of them is literally a GENIUS.  But hey don't let a sterio-type get in the way of using your brain.
@MomOf2    You just made my argument perfectly. You have two men who you admit do crazy stupid stunts yet they both have kids. Shouldn't maybe they show a bit of responsibility and perhaps be more responsible to their children?? The money spent on those sport bikes could maybe be spent on swim lessons and camping gear. Take the children swimming and camping rather than risking their lives doing stupid crap. Wow, they have high school diplomas. Congratulations. Now take care of your children. Act like dads. And get rid of the pit bull while you are at it.
@Hagar As for the pit bull hell no he won't get rid of that dog more than once it has saved his sons life- one night out of the blue his son started having a seizure, the pit bull ran to my brothers room and jumped on the bed barking until my brother and his wife followed her, the boy sleeps on the top bunk and had the parents not gotten in there would have fallen off the bunk- even with a rail- who knows how bad he would have been hurt, he had never had a seizure before but that pit bull helped him, just a few months ago someone tried breaking into my brothers house, who do you think heard them first? The pit bull. The thief was high and had a stolen handgun on him when the cops found him hiding in the neighbors yard.
@Hagar Funny you should mention camping, both brothers have multiple tents, sleeping bags, camp stoves, battery operated lanterns, fishing poles, etc and take their boys camping every year, both of my nephews can swim, both have college funds, both can help their dads work on their trucks, and both brothers sit and watch Tv and play video games with their boys. And I never said they still do crazy stunts I said they did, you know back BEFORE they were in their mid 20's and had kids. Just because they have kids and sport bikes doesn't mean they are bad fathers- in fact so many people comment on how well behaved their boys are and of course we know well behaved kids come from parents who care and actually parent and spend time with their kids.
@Hagar So in other words, if they dont live their lives like you believe they should, according to your personal values, they aren't good parents? Because you disagree with how they spend their disposable income somehow reflects poorly on them why?Â
@Hagar Just because you buy a sport bike (which is rather inexpensive) doesn't mean you cannot take your children swimming and camping. I ride. I will always ride. I also carry life insurance just in case I don't make it back. Being responsible doesn't mean you cannot have fun. Just because my definition of fun is different then yours doesn't mean that I'm wrong, or less of a person then you are. When my daughter is old enough, I will take her riding with me. When she reaches the appropriate size, I'll buy her a dirt bike, if she wants. That doesn't make me less of a Dad. Oh and I will never pay for swim lessons but that is because I was a competitive swimmer, lifeguard, and swim instructor.
@MomOf2 The fact you misspelled stereotype makes me respect you less.
@Kory White @MomOf2 Your lack of respect for me doesn't bother me one bit. I am secure enough in myself to not need others approval or the respect of someone who I will never know.Â
@Landshark @Kory White @MomOf2 I have less respect for all of you.
@Kory White @MomOf2 You lose respect for people over simple spelling mistakes?  Are you really that shallow?