"Steve Kinzey, 43, believed to be the president of the local chapter of the Devils Diciples motorcycle club, has been the target of a 6-month narcotics and weapons trafficking investigation, sheriff’s spokeswoman Jodi Miller said. [...]
"During a raid at his Highland home last week, investigators seized more than a pound of methamphetamine, rifles, handguns, body armor, leather biker vests and other biker paraphernalia and evidence of his involvement with the Devils Diciples. Investigators believed that Kinzey received large amounts of methamphetamine from a supplier and distributed the drug to a network of dealers, Miller said."
Dammit, Presto! Our posts about this passed each other in cyberspace like ships in the night. I thought I'd finally posted something without learning that it already had been discussed. I beat you by a minute, but yours is briefer, so I'll delete mine.
ReplyDeleteA few points caught my attention in the full story in the L.A. Times:
1. A gang led by a professor ought to at least spell its name correctly.
2. His live-in girlfriend and alleged co-dealer is about 10 years younger and graduated from CSUSB in 2005. He started teaching there in 2001.
3. He "has a doctorate degree from the University of Toledo in Ohio, a master's degree from Indiana State University and a bachelor's degree from Wayne State University in Detroit."
3. "His father, Hank Kinzey of Rochester Hills, Mich., said he was 'sick to my stomach' after learning about the allegations. . . . 'My son is a Christian. . .,' the elder Kinzey said. 'My son doesn't drink. My son doesn't smoke. I don't get it. He's a PhD.'
4. "Kinzey remains a fugitive and is considered armed and dangerous, officials said."
Sorry to comment on my comment, but since there's already a comment on my post, I won't delete it. Comments?
ReplyDeleteI might contemplate the social experiment that is "drug runnin" like this guy did if I'd been up against those CSU furloughs too.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, I'm told those cats took one hell of a pay cut, yo.
I wondered about the girlfriend too.
ReplyDelete@Eskarina
ReplyDeleteRe: your points
#1. Creative spelling is Goddamned common in motorcycle gangs; there may have been another gang with the same name and it was either mis-spell the name or get curb-stomped....the most well-known biker gang in California is the Hells Angels (notice the lack of an apostraphe); the nastier group the Mongols sometimes spell it "Mongol's" on their leather jerkins (many gangs have these sleveless jackets as riding gear, and they have seperate patches with the gang name, insignia, and subchapter sewn to the back.)
3.a. He might be straight-edge (i.e. no drinking, no drugging); punks started the straight-edge subculture, but others have picked it up....he might make/deal meth, be he does not try it. A smart move.
4. (actually 5) As I wrote elsewhere, I hope this guy chain-whips his enemies to death....blast the cop's face off with the sawed-off shotgun, Kinzey! Ride to Mexico and FREEDOM!!!
This article was sent in to me by a number of folks yesterday.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if CSU collected overhead...?
ReplyDeleteI recall having seen an explanation for the missing "s" in "diciples" a few years back, but I disremember where, and now I can't find it. Perhaps it was on a Discovery Channel documentary? In any case, the spelling is intentional.
ReplyDeleteThere's an incredible bias against bike guys anyway, so you have to take all of this with a grain of salt. People treat me like I'm a Hell's Angel and I just have a very sedate BMW. Ridiculously bigoted public perception. Not as bad as smokers and overweight people get, but close.
ReplyDeleteThe misspelling of "Diciples" was to avoid being (understandably!) mistaken for a religious group.
ReplyDeleteThey have a website (www.devilsdiciples.org) that is riddled with rather comical alternative spellings. And you can order merchandise!
@Reg: YMMV I guess. I'm in my fourth decade of riding. Didn't own my first car until I was nearly 40, so we're talking more than 20 years of using a motorcycle as my only personal motor vehicle. I have never once been looked at askance.
ReplyDeleteNow excuse me, I've got to go check on my cook.
@Archie
ReplyDeleteObviously our experiences are different, but in 35 years of riding I've been treated poorly, asked inane questions, and have seen colleagues bristle when they realize I'm the man on the dirty bike.
Student reaction is less severe, and it has the unwelcome effect of making certain males of the species think that I'd like to be their friend.
I don't think the "motorcycle rider" aspect is what has excited the police and the media here. I think it's the guns, body armour, gang paraphernalia, and of course the pound of meth.
ReplyDelete"I think it's the guns, body armour, gang paraphernalia, and of course the pound of meth."
ReplyDeleteBut that's de rigeur for motorcycle gangs now; meth has replaced the cocaine they used to smuggle out of Mexico in the 1960s....If you can't make money repairing/customizing bikes, make it through smuggling.
Middle-aged guys on big dirty bikes: mildly charming, or amusing, depending on how seriously you take big dirty bikes.
ReplyDeleteMiddle-aged guys with meth and weapons, on big dirty bikes or not: truly scary and not really what I want in a colleague.
"Middle-aged guys with meth and weapons, on big dirty bikes or not: truly scary and not really what I want in a colleague."
ReplyDeleteI don't think he told his coworkers about the crystal, the weapons, or the gang; if he was smart enough, he never rode a chopper into the parking lot either. A double life. He would (probably) only get scary if you found out about the Diciples and confronted him with it.
I don't consider the motorcycle to be a problem; the gangs, like all gangs are only a problem if you live in their area or confront them with this or that (mainly the drug trade, where the gangs are couriers or muscle for the dealers.) Otherwise you will probably never meet.
Let me put it differently, then. Guys with double lives that involve weapons, violence, and drug dealing: not what I want in a colleague.
ReplyDelete@ F&T -- I agree about the first two criteria, but as for the third... Well, if a colleague can hook a body up with some kind-ass cheeba (off campus, natch), then that's not necessarily an undesirable colleague.
ReplyDeleteFolks, I knew the spelling was deliberate. I was just trying to find an academic joke. Oh, well.
ReplyDelete@Annie: Their merchandise includes the same black top/ plaid bottom pajama set as our Yaro swag! http://www.cafepress.com/4444444444.520214635
Oh Lordy. I missed the jammies. Thanks for the link :0)!!
ReplyDeleteMy fav Diciples item for back-to-school is the Talk Shit Get Hit book bag. The jammies are cute, but not nearly so adorable as Yaro.
ReplyDelete