Reporter: Hunter Walterman
•6/13/2026
CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. (WINK)—The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office is cracking down on reckless e-bike riding after deputies say teenagers are ignoring traffic laws and leading them on chases.
The sheriff's office says some riders are repeatedly blowing through stop signs, crosswalks and ignoring pedestrians.
"So basically the message is, be safe, or get off the darn thing," Chris Hall with the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office said.
The sheriff's office shared a compilation of 911 calls and body camera video, including the arrest of a Babcock Ranch teenager after deputies say he ran from police.
"This young man made a decision today, and these are the reprecussions of his decision," a deputy said in the body camera footage.
Deputies say they're seeing more teenagers ignore traffic laws and run away from them on e-bikes, e-motos and e-scooters. The sheriff's office says the reckless behavior is threatening public safety.
"We're seeing kids and adults get hurt," Hall said.
The sheriff's office released 911 calls from crashes involving e-bike riders.
Rich Tomaso has been repairing bikes for 50 years at his shop. He says a small group of people are giving the e-bike community a bad name.
"I respect the kids need to go out and have fun…they're doing it the wrong way," Tomaso said.
The sheriff's office is encouraging parents to educate themselves about e-bike laws. It says many store-bought e-moto bikes are not street legal.
"You need a motorcycle endorsement, registration, drivers license, a whole slew of things," a deputy said in body camera footage.
Tomaso says some e-bikes can be like an electric motorcycle.
"That'd be the same as me buying my son a gun and telling him…instead of a BB gun, here's a nine millimeter - go out and play with that," Tomaso said.
Deputies say they want kids to have a fun summer without becoming a statistic.
"It keeps everyone safer and prevents us from charging, criminally, a juvenile," Charlotte County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Dustin Paille said.
The sheriff's office says it does not have statistics on the number of e-bike crashes or injuries.
