Biker gangs clash at Sturgis rally
Sturgis, South Dakota - Biker gangs sometimes brought violence to the annual Sturgis motorcycle rally but the event, which draws about a half-million people to the Black Hills of South Dakota each August, has become older, laid-back and more diverse.
This year, however, gunshots about 120km away reminded riders about the gangs. Police said two men affiliated to the Hell's Angels shot and wounded five Outlaws motorcycle club members in Custer State Park.
Chad Wilson and John Midmore face five counts of attempted murder; a judge set bail at $5-million (about R34-million) each.
The Sturgis rally attracts bikers from all walks of life to the Black Hills, a patch of forest and valleys 160km long and 80km wide. The town of about 7000 souls is on the northern edge of the Hills; Custer State Park is to the south.
Sturgis police chief Jim Bush said some Hell's Angels own land near Sturgis so the club has a presence at every rally. Police also knew that hundreds of Outlaws members planned to gather at a rented southern Hills campsite.
The Outlaws are one of America's four largest motorcycle clubs, along with the Hell's Angels, Pagans and Bandidos. They have chapters in 20 states, Europe, Canada and Australia.
A posting on the Outlaws website said law enforcement agencies were informed of the group's plans to attend Sturgis.
It said: "We are not going there to make any type of statement or display of power. We are simply going there to enjoy the Sturgis venue, see the historical sights and spend time with our Brothers."
The most recent violence involving motorcycle clubs during the Sturgis rally was in 1990 when a Sons of Silence member shot an Outlaw during a bar brawl in which two other Sons members were stabbed.
Bush said: "They haven't changed; they're as organised and involved in crime as they ever were."
He said the shooting was one of only a few rally-related incidents of violence; the only other club arrests were three or four members picked up for unrelated crime.
"They usually get along pretty good," he said.
Nobody's talking
A few riders wearing Hells Angels vests and T-shirts were on Main Street in Sturgis for the 66th annual rally.
None of three men staffing the club's stall selling club badges, T-shirts and bumper stickers wanted to discuss the shooting; a worker at the club's tattoo shop down the street also refused to comment.
State division of criminal investigation director Jim Vlahakis said more than 300 Outlaws representing 119 chapters had been seen in the area, along with 80 to 100 Hell's Angels.
Officers were prepared to respond to gang violence, Bush said, adding that eventual retaliation was likely.
"It may not happen here," he said. "It could happen a month from now, somewhere else. - Sapa-AP