Should Dark Visors on Helmets Be Banned?
Yesterday, two tourists were the victim of a handbag snatch on Trimingham Road in Paget. The official description of the suspects from the Police is “two men wearing dark coloured clothing and dark coloured helmets with dark coloured visors.”
That instance is far from the first time time suspects have been described as wearing visors, with the most notable instance being the daylight murder of Kimwandae Walker at a Good Friday kite flying celebration on April 2, 2010.
Bernews spoke with witnesses to the murder who uniformly described the suspects as wearing dark visors that shielded their faces almost entirely. Some area residents later expressed frustration that it was said witnesses weren’t forthcoming with descriptions, pointing out they did provide a description of the suspects “faces” – dark visors.
One man at the scene of the Victor Scott tragedy told us that in future whenever he sees an individual “ride up on me in a dark visor, I’m hitting the deck“.
There have been other instances of suspects faces being described as wearing dark visors including a burglary at Rosemont Guest Apartments in Pembroke, where unknown men forced their way in, stole items before escaping. Both suspects were wearing black helmets with black visors. In another handbag snatch case on Cockburn Road in Somerset, two of the suspects were described as wearing helmets with visors.
Community action group ‘Rise Above Bermuda’ have already mentioned the possibility of banning tinted visors. Any possible banning has not been mentioned in any official capacity, and is just a question we have posed.
Below is a photo we just took of a Bermudian wearing one of the helmets/visors in question:
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Bermuda is a tiny island, and we are notorious for “recognizing everyone”. Can you recognize the person in the photo? Do you think banning dark visors would help stem crime in Bermuda, or it is an overbearing idea?
Let us know here, via Twitter [@bernewsdotcom] or read the feedback on our Facebook page…
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Articles that link to this one:
- 69% Of Locals Say Don’t Ban Dark Visors | Bernews.com | July 10, 2010
To ban dark visors is a slipper slope. Should we ban wool hats and scarfs? Should we ban goggles and dive masks?
Even if you have a clear exterior visor, you can have a helmet that has built-in “sunglasses” or an interior tinted visor, so to speak. The Bermuda Police uses the Nolan helmets that have this feature. Should we require people to not where sunglasses while where helmets too?
Where does one draw the line?
You could conceal your face with a stocking. Should we ban ladies’ stockings on the island? In that case, should we also ban dance costumes, which use a similar material?
When do we stop banning and just start commanding that everyone has to wear the Bermuda Uniform of approved clothing? Surely it would be easier to provide a list of what can be worn rather than a list of what can not be worn if you want to wander down this road.
I think addressing the issue from another point of view could be considered. Firstly, tourist on bikes should be something we move away from. They should have the option to rent small two person vehichles. Although adds to traffic it can save lives as they are not always competent riding and avoid drive by handbag snatching. If not safe secured baskets on rental bikes. This nonsense has been happening for too long.
Banning dark visors or any visor on a helmet is taking away from the intergretity and safety of the helemt that the customer purchases. I can personally speak from this as a visor saved my face from extremely painful road rash in an accident that I had a year ago.
I think that DARK visors should be banned, just like dark windows in a car are banned. If Police and others cannot see inside a vehicle it is deemed not to be safe so why should riders be allowed to wear dark visors? At night they cannot see through a dark visor, potentially endangering members of the public while riding. Also they are not easily identifible by the police or anyone else for that matter. I do understand that visors protect your face while riding, but a dark visor will protect it no better than a clear visor.
Amommy, the two are totally separate issues.
Firstly, a car cannot be deemed safe because you cannot see how many people are in it and what they are doing. A rider on a bike, you can see exactly how many people are on it, and you can see what they are doing. there is no mystery except for the face, but that could be covered by a mask, scarf, etc anyway.
with regards to not seeing through it at night, i would like to inform you that visors do tilt up, in case you were unaware. They do move out of the way similar to how someone with sunglasses on takes them off at night (although for some reason some people don’t).
I’ll be honest.. you sound like you are in the group of people that drives a car primarily, and are more worried about not letting bikers get something you don’t, and less about the actual issue of it as a crime deterrent.
For those that are defending dark visors, dark car windows, ladies stockings, etc. (seriously, dude?), what do you propose, then, should be done to deter anonymous criminals…?
The last murder was done by dark visor wearing riders as well. Two dead guys this year whose murderers won’t ever see the inside of Westgate as they had sense enough to wear a dark visor. I bet you that defend them will be ducking like crazy if two guys ride up on you with faces blacked out by visors