This spring and summer have seen a surge in sideshow activity on both sides of the Bay, with San Francisco police recently seizing several vehicles involved in a particularly wild event that took place in June. The sideshow in question occurred at Embarcadero and Washington Street in San Francisco on June 9, where a car ended up in flames while multiple people stood on and around it, capturing videos of the chaotic scene.
The sideshow was the culmination of a roving caravan of vehicles that crossed the Bay Bridge from Oakland after midnight on a Saturday. Multiple sideshows then took shape in different locations simultaneously, according to the SFPD. Officers managed to thwart a sideshow at 13th Street and South Van Ness Avenue just before the Embarcadero event began, as reported by KRON4.
Following the event, officers from the SFPD’s special unit dedicated to stunt driving seized five vehicles that were identified as participants in the Embarcadero sideshow. Among the vehicles seized were a silver Ford Mustang and a heavily damaged Chevy Corvette. The SFPD conducted a follow-up investigation with the assistance of other Bay Area law enforcement agencies to track down the vehicles involved.
It is worth noting that police departments like the SFPD typically choose to enforce laws against sideshow activity after the events have taken place, rather than intervening during the events for safety reasons. In this case, officers arrived on the scene after the Embarcadero sideshow had already begun and were able to disband it. Another sideshow occurred shortly after, around 3 am, near Cesar Chavez and Valencia Street.
SFPD Chief William Scott condemned the illegal sideshow events, stating, „These illegal events are unacceptable in our city. I want to thank the hard-working members of the San Francisco Police Department who put themselves in harm’s way when responding to these dangerous and unlawful activities.“
The crackdown on sideshows comes as communities across the Bay Area are passing new laws to address the issue of stunt-driving events. While sideshows may be seen as a form of entertainment by some, they pose significant risks to public safety and can result in property damage, injuries, and even fatalities. Law enforcement agencies are working diligently to address and prevent sideshow activity to ensure the safety of residents and visitors in the Bay Area.