The national administrator for the 2 Million Bikers to DC Facebook page issued a press release saying that the meeting on May 17th at the Twin Peaks restaurant gathered with no intent to engage in organized crime. He includes in the letter what he calls the agenda for the meeting that day.
Cops arrested over 175 people after the fatal shootings of nine bikers. The carnage left 20 wounded.
Authorities swept up the bikers at the Twin Peaks restaurant in a mass arrest and charged all with the felony of engaging in criminal activity.
The bikers at the meetings included members of Christian clubs, veterans, riding clubs (as opposed to motorcycle clubs), and independents (riders not associated with a motorcycle or riding club).
Cara Danette Johnston told Breitbart Texas that the “biggest lie” is that the bikers all went to a regularly-scheduled regional bikers meeting with criminal intent, and/or to discuss anything related to a “turf war.”
Johnson describes herself as a biker “[w]ho loves and believes in the good hearts and wonderful bikers I call brothers and sisters who have carried me thru the worst times of my life.”
The biker who wrote the letter to the media, John Bostick, is a member of the Confederation of Clubs and Independents. He wrote, “I was not able to attend the scheduled COC&I meeting in Waco on May 17, 2015, but if I had been there, I possibly would have been killed, wounded, or arrested with the 177.”
Bostick writes in the press release, “Bikers know that the COC&I meeting was not scheduled to plan or promote violence. I have never heard of any violence at a COC&I meeting and they have been having them regularly for over 20 years.”
The group gathered there, the Texas Confederation of Clubs and Independents (CoC&I), hold frequent meetings to discuss biker safety issues, proposed legislation, and other motorcycle issues. They had no intent to engage in organized crime. Their website gives a very different impression of the group’s purpose and goals than what has been portrayed by law enforcement officials after the restaurant shootings.
In his letter to the press on Tuesday, Bostick enumerated the legislation he said was discussed by the bikers at the May 17th meeting:
- SB754 – Relating to the use of money in the motorcycle education fund account for certain motorcycle safety programs. (Passed in the 84th session)
- SB 334, HB 813 and SB 442 – Were stranded in the transportation committees as the Texas legislative session closed on 01-JUN-2015.
- SB 334 – Relating to the rules of the road regarding red signals at certain traffic control signals.
- HB 813 – Relating to the operation and movement of motorcycles during periods of traffic congestion.
- SB 442 – Relating to the operation and movement of motorcycles on certain highways during periods of traffic congestion.
Bostick stated, “All of these bills were authored or co-authored by COC&I members.”
As reported by Breitbart Texas, police characterized the afternoon gathering at the Waco Twin Peaks restaurant as a gathering of criminal biker gangs with violent intent. The bikers described the meeting as a legitimate, organized gathering of motorcycle riders to discuss political issues and other salient topics.
Bostick wrote in his press release, “The political activity of the COC&I has either caused some discomfort for someone with lots of authority in law enforcement or they used the assault to stop the open carry legislation that was pending at the time.”
He continued, “This ‘code name unknown’ operation was not the result of the bikers having a war over turf or recruitment. The bikers know that this was a planned assault and that the propaganda blitz to the news media was used to destroy our character and reputations so we are guilty in the court of public opinion.”
Bostick’s email charges:
With the press releases not mentioning the scheduled COC&I meeting, it is evident to the bikers that law enforcement used the media to create a (bad boys) scenario of the bikers, so using military style assault weapons on a group of politically active citizens was justified because a fight started. It is also obvious that the[ir] assault was premeditated because of targeting the scheduled meeting, withholding it from the public, and being on the scene in hiding in such large numbers. They were there with the PD, SWAT, and DPS shooters lying in wait. If they had put two officers in uniform in plain sight on the premises the rest could have taken the day off without any [incident]. The police dispatch recordings prove that the planning had taken place well in advance because officers were using coded terms for the different sides of the buildings that could have only been derived in their preparation of the assault.
Louie Nobs, liaison to the board of National Coalition of Motorcyclists, and former national vice president of Soldiers for Jesus MC (motorcycle club) told Breitbart Texas, “I am not willing for our Christian bikers to be vilified as ‘engaging in organized crime’ when our mission is to serve the biker community. We marry them, bury them, make hospital visits, and raise funds to help their families. How does that make us a “biker gang?”
Steven Cochran, vice president and a founding father of the “Sons of the South MC,” and the Texas state director of the Texas Legislative Strike Force told Breitbart Texas, “We have been demonized and dehumanized. The continued dialogue is being falsified to support their narrative – a narrative that was false from the beginning.”
Cochran is also a former state commander of the US Defenders (2010-2015), an organization whose website says it “fights for our rights and civil liberties.”
Cochran told Breitbart Texas that motorcycle clubs in Texas have raised over $24 million for charities and charitable causes over the last 20 years. He says that this amount does not include the amounts raised by clubs doing independent fundraising.
Breitbart Texas reported about the bikers fighting the prosecution’s persistent and flagrant use of terms such as “outlaw bikers,” “biker gangs,” and “outlaw biker gangs” when referring to motorcycle riders and all of the bikers in Waco on May 17th. They cite legal opinions that prevent such “guilt by association” arguments by the state.
Lana Shadwick is a contributing writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served the state as a prosecutor and associate judge. Follow her on Twitter @LanaShadwick2