JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Five people were arrested and more than 70 citations were given Saturday during “Operation Decelerate,” a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and Florida Highway Patrol deployment to crack down on street racing and dangerous driving.
Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters said police received intelligence through social media that groups from around the country planned to meet in Jacksonville. The operation was conducted in response to citizen complaints about the unauthorized closure of roadways, street racing, and dangerous stunt maneuvers.
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Waters said while there weren’t a large number of arrests, the arrests that were made were “meaningful,” as the organizer of the event was among those arrested.
Vehicles were also impounded and seized. Waters also showed a video of one of the participants being injured which was very graphic. Action News Jax chose not to show that portion of the video live on CBS47 Action News Jax at Noon, but we will show an edited version on CBS47 and FOX30 Action News Jax at 5.
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Waters said that once state law changes on July 1 to include stricter penalties for street racing, there will be no grace period.
“Your dangerous games will not be tolerated,” Waters said, addressing illegal street racing participants directly.
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