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Ollies and officers
National Skateboarding Day brings out the men in blue, too.
By JUSTIN GEORGE
Published June 22, 2007
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Skateboarders begin to roll down Pierce Street in Tampa as they return to Perry Harvey Park from Joe Chillura Park on "National Go Skateboarding Day."
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[Times photo: Kathleen Flynn]
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[Times photo: Kathleen Flynn]
A police officer tries to direct around 300 skateboarders as they walk to Joe Chillura Park from Perry Harvey Park in Tampa on "National Go Skateboarding Day."
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National Go Skateboarding Day
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TAMPA -- Scores of skateboarders gathered in the Bro Bowl, a green, pond-shaped skateboarding course, like a school of corralled fish.
National Skateboarding Day, an underground movement advertised through word of mouth and Myspace.com, had sent them Thursday to Perry Harvey Sr. Park. It also drew Tampa police officers. Blue uniforms stood at every turn. A police helicopter flew above. Squad cars circled, making downtown workers wonder.
"I thought it was the governor or maybe a diplomat," said Joann Finelli, 40.
Nope. Just skaters.
"They act like d----," David Martin, 15, a Bloomingdale Senior High School student, said of the police presence.
"They yelled at us for jaywalking. Who yells at us for jaywalking?"
The day began with a plan. Skaters would meet, roll downtown and attempt to "ollie" some stairs near the Sykes building.
Police stopped it. Last year, they arrested 15 people after more than 200 skaters caused traffic tieups and two auto accidents, police spokeswoman Laura McElroy said. They roughed up a security guard and caused about $5,000 in damage, she said.
Thursday, police passed out fliers bottling up boarders in the Bro Bowl. They warned them not to skate elsewhere.
They didn't. But, just after noon, they walked peacefully to a rally at nearby Joe Chillura Park. Ryan Clements, 33, general manager of the Skate Park of Tampa, thanked the crowd of 300.
Everyone dispersed. But this time, many took to their boards.
One teen crossed three lanes of traffic, causing a police officer to step off his bike to avoid a collision. Another, walking next to a bicycling officer, jumped on his board after the officer said, "don't do it," McElroy said.
Both 16, they were arrested and taken to a Juvenile Assessment Center, where they should be released to their parents, McElroy said. They face charges of opposing a police officer without violence and violating an ordinance prohibiting skating in downtown areas.
The ordinance carries a sentence of up to 60 days in jail.
"That's what our city resources are doing?" Clement asked.
McElroy said police just wanted to keep control.
"Our job today was not to come out and arrest kids," she said. "Our job was to make sure kids are safe."
For Trey Palmer, 18, it was an anticlimactic ending. He used his lunch break to wait near the Sykes building for the ollie contest. Saddled by a job at a car dealership, he envied the skaters.
"Real life," he said. "Gotta work. None of these kids have jobs."
He left disappointed when few showed up.
"Have to be at work in five minutes," Palmer said.
Times staff writer Abbie VanSickle contributed to this report. Justin George can be reached at (813) 226-3368 or jgeorge@sptimes.com.
[Last modified June 22, 2007, 01:39:29]
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Comments on this article
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by Ian Tilmann Foundation
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07/04/07 12:12 AM
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The only problem I saw in the photos was MOST of the young people were NOT wearing helmets! Skaters are Cool...Be Smart, Stay Cool & Alive...Always Wear A Helmet! For info on receiving a "FREE" helmet go to www.theiantilmannfoundation.org
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by Stop whining
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07/02/07 07:00 PM
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You know, I get tired of these supposed moms that complain about their stupid child's freedoms to skate everywhere and just create havoc for a city...I am PROUD that the cops are out there and skateboards should just be used near their homes..PERIOD
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by jones
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06/25/07 04:57 PM
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ok...what i dont undertand is that people make a big deal about kids being overweight but yet they arrest kids when they get out and skate. maybe thats why this country is so fat...is cause when we try to do anything physical, cops come in.
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by DAVID
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06/25/07 04:54 PM
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I WAS THE 1 THAT THEY SAY CALLED THE COPS D---S IN THE ARTICLE.YOU SEE I WASN'T THE 1 THAT SAID THAT.
I WAS INTERVIEWED BY JUSTIN GEORGE AND ALL I SAID WAS THE COPS WERE YELLING AT ME AND MY FRIENDS FOR JAY WALKING ON A COMPLETELY EMPTY STREET.
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by DAVID
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06/25/07 04:54 PM
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THE REASON THAT WAS SAID IS BECAUSE WHEN I WAS INTERVIEWED OTHER PEOPLE WERE SAYING THINGS.SO I WAS NOT THE 1 THAT SAID THAT.DON'T THINK OF ME IN THE WRONG WAY.
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by lynsey
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06/25/07 04:54 PM
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i love david martin but he wouldnt AND didnt say that...the kid next to him did.
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by Bob
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06/22/07 04:22 PM
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Next year I would love to see 3,000 skaters instead of 300! or maybe 30,000!
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by witness
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06/22/07 04:12 PM
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a huge number of police there for the whole day......how much did that cost including the overtime,copters that buzzed above and officers that were called from other areas? can't wait to see how much this cost...just check your property tax bill.
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by mike
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06/22/07 01:22 PM
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Young adults? These are ignorant children with such an absurd sense of entitlement that they think it's their right to disrupt traffic in a major city. I bet that foul-mouthed little punk wouldn't have the cahones to call a cop a d--- to his face.
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by Dan
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06/22/07 12:34 PM
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These kids were skating in the middle of the road ion downtown tampa on a work day. High traffic. They're lucky someone wasn't killed - last year there was A LOT of damage done and several car accidents caused by these kids.
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by R. Fix
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06/22/07 11:48 AM
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This is not a "kids rights issue" Nor is causing traffic accidents , jaywalking, and property damage harmless creative and political expression as Rob believes. If more fines were handed to the parents this wouldnt be happening at an increasing rate
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by jack s
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06/22/07 11:35 AM
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Rebellion against authority, disregard for the rights and properties of others is societal suicide. The lesson we should be teaching our "youth" is the right to swing your fist ends at another's nose. persist and pay the price (act responsibly)
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by mike
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06/22/07 11:28 AM
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These morons should have been locked up the second they skated on a street or sidewalk. Without the police presence, these obnoxious little children would have caused major traffic problems that would have resulted in fights and injuries.
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by jack s
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06/22/07 11:28 AM
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No "kid" has the right to violate existing law. Police have the responsibility to equally enforce the law for the common good of ALL citizens. Activities that endanger self and others and result in the destruction of property is not HEALTHY. cont)
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by paul
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06/22/07 11:23 AM
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Oh my gosh, this is hillarious! The police had a helicopter out because a bunch of kids organized themselves and had a skateboarding event? Wow! Tampa is even worse off than I thought. First the 'no gay events' now they hate kids on skateboards.
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by kim
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06/22/07 11:04 AM
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Dale.. arresting a child for skatebording is ridiclus.Put cops out there if they must and have them watch the kids to make sure they are obeying traffic rules.Don't sit out there to harrass them!!
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by Rob
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06/22/07 10:45 AM
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These young adults express their creativity through physical activity, fashion, and now political expression. Like our hippie turned banker boomers, only healthier. Turn off your cell phones & try not to run over our future. Life isn't a 1-way Street
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by Dale
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06/22/07 09:30 AM
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Wonder how many of you would be on here yelling about the police not enforcing the laws and keeping the kids safe if a few of them had been killed by motorists.
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by michelle
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06/22/07 09:19 AM
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Go fight some real crime would ya... there are drug dealers on the streets,gang members etc..That the cops should be more concerned about. Not kids being kids and skateboarding
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by Glenn
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06/22/07 09:14 AM
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Let the kids skate, at least they're outdoors doing a physical activity and not standing on the corner selling drugs. Send the police to crime riddled areas and let boys be boys. Stop wasting taxpayers money and then cry to the media about tax cuts
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by shelba
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06/22/07 08:42 AM
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All we have heard for over a month is how the police are going to have to cut services due to the new tax laws. Arresting kids on skateboards is a great way to use our dwindling police services. Poor choice Tampa.
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by Saur
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06/22/07 08:22 AM
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Not many people stand up for kids' rights, but this is a wrong law that has been passed for the right reasons. I've written more about it in my blog today at http://franklysaurkraut.blogspot.com/
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by Ken
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06/22/07 06:48 AM
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No, David Martin, the "d---s" were the jerks who skated against the traffic on the one-way street. And we watched one of those "d---s" keep one skateboarder from running into to side of a car as he ran across a street against the light.
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