5 arrests, 5 cars towed, guns seized: Sacramento police crack down on latest sideshow
Sacramento police responded to sideshows Saturday that drew dozens of cars to the illegal street takeovers throughout the city and county, authorities said.
Officers with the Sacramento Police Department partnered with other agencies to make five arrests, seize four handguns, tow five vehicles and issue 12 citations during the afternoon sideshows that involved roughly 100 vehicles, according to a social media post by the department.
This is the second major series of sideshows — gatherings in which drivers take over roadways and parking lots to perform car stunts — in a week for the Sacramento region.
City police responded to sideshow events involving an estimated 200 participants, stunts, gunshots and related crimes late Aug. 5 and into the morning of Aug. 6 in North Laguna, North Highlands, Gardenland, South Natomas and Land Park.
In one incident, a bystander’s truck was allegedly set ablaze.
Officers were made aware of last week’s sideshows within the city roughly two hours before they happened, according to department spokesman Officer Anthony Gamble, but the agency did not have the resources available to address it “the way that we’d like to address it,” Gamble said.
“We remain committed to a zero-tolerance policy regarding these events and would like to remind the public that participation in sideshow events can result in vehicles being impounded and can lead to fines and penalties up to and including arrest,” the Sacramento Police Department said in a statement Sunday.
New laws would boost sideshow fines, penalty
Sacramento City Councilwoman Lisa Kaplan is hoping to increase sideshow-offender fines to several thousand dollars with legislation she will present to council Tuesday.
Kaplan said her proposal would even out the cost of repairs; restriping a crosswalk damaged in a sideshow event, for example, costs between $2,500 and $3,000.
The city is also working with the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office to ensure sideshow participants’ vehicles are impounded for a state maximum of 30 days, Kaplan said.
On the state level, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 3 in 2021, which will add up to a six-month driver’s license suspension to the punishment for convicted sideshow offenders. The law will take effect July 1, 2025.
The Sacramento Police Department said Sunday that people who witness or have information regarding sideshows can contact the dispatch center at 916-808-5471 or Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers at 916-443-4357. Anonymous tips can be submitted using the P3 Tips smartphone app.