6 westword.com WESTWORD JULY 23-29, 2026 | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | Revving Up CITY COUNCIL AND POLICE WANT TO CRACK DOWN ON TEEN DIRT BIKERS. BY HANNAH METZGER In downtown Denver, teenagers on dirt bikes are as common as “native” bumper stick- ers. But riding those kinds of off-highway vehicles on public streets is actually illegal in Colorado. Denver City Council members are work- ing on regulations to crack down on street use of dirt bikes, electric motorcycles, four- wheelers and other prohibited vehicles. Though the restrictions would apply to everyone, the effort is specifi cally intended to keep young riders off the roads. Council members say they were inspired to take ac- tion following the deaths of two local teens. In May, 14-year-old Angel Mendoza and 17-year-old Isaac Rivera Cruz were killed while riding a go-kart near South Federal Boulevard and West Evans Avenue in south- west Denver. The boys reportedly drove the go-kart out of a parking lot and onto Evans Avenue, cutting in front of a moving SUV, according to the police report. The SUV struck the go-kart, killing both boys. “We can’t just sit back and wait for the next fatality,” says Councilman Kevin Flynn, who is leading the effort with Councilman Chris Hinds. “It’s simply something we have to ad- dress,” Flynn adds. “Next time this hap- pens, I don’t want to have to say to a family, ‘We’re sorry, but we didn’t do anything [to prevent] this.’” Municipalities throughout the Denver metro have recently passed restrictions on off-highway vehicles, including Douglas County, Aurora and Castle Pines. Denver offi cials are looking to take inspiration from these neighbors as they begin drafting their own proposal. Colorado law prohibits off-highway ve- hicles from public streets, roads and high- ways statewide. However, Denver police say a city ordinance could help clarify the rules for the public and strengthen enforcement options for authorities. “I have not been to a community meeting in the past six months where this hasn’t come up,” DPD Deputy Chief Aaron Sanchez says. “Anytime these vehicles are on the roadway, they create a safety hazard; one, for the rider, and two, for the general public.” Large groups of dirt bike and e-moto riders often illegally gather in downtown Denver. More than 100 riders fl ooded South Broadway on July 16; footage from Fox31 shows them running multiple red lights, blocking the bus lane and popping wheelies. Social media posts of the group ride appear to show minors taking part. Recent devastating crashes throughout the metro have made city offi cials rethink how they handle the vehicles. On July 16, a juvenile e-motorcycle rider was hospitalized in Commerce City after he ran a stop sign and was struck by a vehicle. In May, a juve- nile died in an ATV crash in Adams County. Last December, a 15-year-old died in a dirt bike crash near Colorado Springs. Months before, an adult was killed in Aurora after he drove his dirt bike into a pickup truck. And in September of 2025, an 18-year-old was killed in a crash between a dirt bike and an ATV in Aurora. Sanchez says it is diffi cult to put a num- ber on the scope of the issue in Denver. He says police try to give warnings rather than citations when dealing with minors, and crash reports are fragmented across various categories depending on how the vehicle is identifi ed. For the council members, one death is too many. “We have a responsibility to make sure that our city is safe,” Hinds says. What would the new regulations do? Specifi cs for Denver’s potential regula- tions are slim. Council members are early in the research phase for the proposed or- dinance, and it will likely undergo changes once introduced to the rest of the council. “Everything should be on the table,” Flynn says, including fi nes, confi scations and even criminal charges. Hinds says he is looking at Douglas Coun- ty’s new restrictions for inspiration. The county’s ordinance requires operators of certain off-highway vehicles to have driver’s licenses and insurance, and adds fi nes up to $1,000 for driving on roads and sidewalks, the Colorado Sun reported. Parents can face fi nes if they knowingly allow their children to ride unauthorized vehicles. Aurora’s ordi- nance fi nes parents at least $250 for letting a minor use off-highway vehicles. Flynn is exploring the possibility of crimi- nal charges against parents who provide vehicles to their children if they are oper- ated in an illegal manner. He points to an ongoing California case in which a mother was charged with felony involuntary man- slaughter after her 14-year-old son allegedly struck and killed a man while riding an illegal e-motorcycle. “I really hope that we can get the word out, focus a spotlight on the problem, and cause parents to think twice,” Flynn says. “It is illegal to ride any of these vehicles in Denver, but parents are buying them for their kids. ... It’s already illegal. What can we do? Make it more illegal? There’s already a parental responsibility.” Sanchez says he is “indifferent” toward going after parents. He’d rather the ordi- nance make it easier for law enforcement to confi scate off-highway vehicles when they’re ridden on public streets. Current nuisance abatement laws have “very, very high standards” for when offi cers can seize property, Sanchez says, making them diffi cult to apply to riding off-highway vehicles. He wants city council to establish a three-strike system for confi scating the vehicles when they are unlawfully ridden on public streets. “I would not be supportive of taking a kid’s mini bike the fi rst time they did it, but if it’s repeated behavior, maybe three strikes, I would like to see the seizure of the vehicle,” Sanchez explains. “That seems, to me, to have more value in correcting behavior than a citation.” What about e-bikes and scooters? The ordinance would not impact stan- dard e-bikes or e-scooters, Hinds and Flynn say. Under the Douglas County ordinance, the restrictions do not apply to e-bikes or e-scooters that travel at only about 20 mph. State law defi nes off-highway vehicles as self-propelled vehicles designed primarily for use off the public highways and com- monly used for recreational purposes. However, e-bikes and e-scooters have also faced criticism in Denver regarding youth safety. In June, a local 13-year-old boy died after he was struck by a vehicle while riding a rentable Veo e-bike. Since Veo be- came the city’s new micromobility operator, some residents have complained of seeing more children riding the e-vehicles, despite minors being prohibited from renting them. Hinds says he is looking into the possibil- ity of requiring age verifi cation for users to rent Veo scooters. That proposal would be separate from the off-road vehicle ordinance. According to Hinds, city council previ- ously discussed mandatory identifi cation as part of the sign-up process for e-bike and e-scooter rentals. However, there were concerns that an ID requirement would negatively impact “migrants and people who are afraid to submit docu- mentation.” “We want to make sure that our city is as welcoming as possible and that these people can get around our city. So, we ended up removing the ID requirement,” he explains. “Under further consideration, we’re taking another look at that.” What’s next? Council members do not have an esti- mated timeframe for when the off-road vehicle ordinance will be introduced. Flynn says they will conduct public out- reach when there are more specifi cs, so residents should be informed about the proposal before city council holds a vote. Even if the regulations are passed into law, he fears it will not solve the issue overnight. “It’s not going to be easy,” Flynn says. “Frankly, it’s extremely diffi cult to enforce because if there’s a police presence around, the kids aren’t going to be doing it. ... I don’t want to make anybody think that we’ll pass this and that’ll stop it. It won’t. But I can’t get the image of those two kids on the go-kart out of my mind.” “It’s not something I can forget,” he adds. “I don’t want to wait for the next one.” Email the author at hannah.metzger@westword. com. NEWS KEEP UP ON DENVER NEWS AT WESTWORD.COM/NEWS Dirt bike riders perform tricks and spew smoke on 16th Street in downtown Denver on March 8. PROVIDED BY CHRIS HAWK
