ATV Rider Who Taunted Police Identified; Will Be Charged, Police Say

What to Know

  • Piera Sterling Barbour will be charged with reckless driving, negligent driving and other related traffic offenses.
  • A warrant also has been issued for Michael Wayne Roane, the man who recorded the video of Barbour.
  • In the video, the ATV rider appears to taunt police officers, who aren't allowed to give chase due to safety concerns for other drivers.

The ATV rider who appeared to taunt officers as he did stunts down a District Heights road has been identified, Prince George's County police said. 

Piera Sterling Barbour, 26, of Fort Washington, will be charged with reckless driving, negligent driving and other related traffic offenses in the ATV case, police said. 

A video posted to Instagram allegedly shows Barbour on an ATV doing stunts and popping a wheelie on Pennsylvania Avenue in District Heights, Maryland, right in front of a police cruiser driving behind him.

In the video, the ATV rider looks back at the police car in an apparent attempt to taunt the officers -- but the cruiser doesn't chase the man.

Police told News4 they aren't allowed to chase the riders because pursuing them endangers other drivers on the road.

Police say a warrant has also been issued for Michael Wayne Roane, the man who recorded the video. He also will be charged with reckless driving, negligent driving and other related traffic offenses. 

"This type of dangerous driving is not welcome on our roadways," said Police Chief Hank Stawinski. "Investigators are constantly working to identify those who engage in this behavior and charge them accordingly."

Barbour is a registered sex offender in Maryland, following a rape conviction in Charles County in 2007.

Police used the video and several others recently posted to social media to try to catch the riders. Some of the videos show ATVs weaving in and out of traffic and many riders even reveal their face on camera.

But the videos are worrisome, police said, because they create a fan base for the riders who post them and encourage them to do more dangerous tricks on the roads.

D.C. Council Member LaRuby May and other District officials have discussed creating a public park for the riders to try to get them off the streets.

Stawinski said the riders posting the videos are not the ones who want a safe, legal place to ride.

"There's really no mixing those two perspectives," he said. "People that want to legitimately do this, we support that fully. People who choose to go out and create havoc on our roadways, we are going to address that."

But ATV rider Andre Wade told News4 he thinks a park would solve the problem. 

"They should build a park. It will stop everything. Build a park," he said.

Wade said until a park is built, he doesn't plan to stop riding on streets.

"We gonna stay on the streets. We gonna stay doing, riding on the streets. We're not bothering nobody," Wade said.

But Coleman said the riders are a danger and police are actively going after anyone who breaks the law.

"We have seen this in the District and it's really upsetting. This is egregious behavior and it's against the law," said D.C. Council Member Brianne Nadeau.

Nadeau co-introduced a bill that increases the potential penalties for riding dirt bikes and ATVs on city streets. Third time offenders would face up to 180 days in jail and up to a $1,000 fine, along with a one year license suspension.

"We need to deter the behavior because right now it's dangerous for our pedestrians, our residents, our visitors and everyone in our community," Nadeau said.

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