Mass. Police Crack Down on Teen E‑Bike Riders Accused of Dangerous Stunts
What to know
- Attleboro police say they have responded to roughly 143 complaints involving reckless juvenile e-bike riders since November, including 27 incidents in May alone involving dangerous stunts, traffic disruptions and attempts to provoke motorists and officers.
- Police arrested three juveniles this week, including a 16-year-old accused of steering directly at a marked cruiser while recording the stunt on a cellphone before allegedly resisting arrest and hurling obscenities at officers.
- The incidents come as Massachusetts agencies report rising concerns over unsafe e-bike use among teens, while Gov. Maura Healey pushes legislation requiring registration, insurance and license plates for certain high-speed e-bikes and scooters.
A Massachusetts police department is dropping the hammer on a rise in “dangerous and reckless” teenage e-bike riders, as it has arrested three juveniles just this week.
The Attleboro Police Department says it responded to 27 incidents of juveniles riding e-bikes in a manner that prompted complaints in May alone, bringing the total to roughly 143 responses since November 2024.
“Most of this activity has been instances of reckless riding,” the department said in a release on Thursday, “such as playing ‘chicken’ with motorists, popping wheelies in opposing lanes, and riding in-and-out of traffic.”
“These riders also engage in conduct in which they try to provoke operators of motor vehicles on city streets into physical altercations,” the department added, “as well as attempting to provoke the police into engaging in dangerous pursuits.”
Riders often record the stunts to post on social media, the department said.
Just this week, the department has charged three juveniles in related incidents, including one on Tuesday night who “intentionally” drove directly towards a marked police cruiser.
“In order to avoid a head-on collision with the rider,” the department said, “the officer had to come to a complete stop in traffic, at which point the rider at the last minute steered away from the cruiser, narrowly avoiding a collision.”
“As the rider passed,” it added, “it was obvious that he was holding a cell phone or similar recording device, video-recording this stunt.”
The officer tried to stop the e-bike after the “dangerous conduct,” as the rider continued to speed away before stopping and beginning to shout expletives at the officer — an action the department described as “an obvious attempt to provoke the officer to pursue the e-bike.”
Other officers arrived at the scene, trying to distract the rider’s attention from the initial responding officer. A detective reportedly grabbed the rider’s arm to take him into custody, but the teenager “tried to accelerate the e-bike from a complete stop” before he fell off the vehicle.
The rider, later identified as a 16-year-old city resident, then “spewed a torrent of obscenities at the officers while being secured in handcuffs, creating even more of a disturbance,” the department said.
Police seized the e-bike and charged the teenager with assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, and disturbing the peace.
On Wednesday night, police arrested two other juveniles, a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old, who the department says are “known associates” of the teenager arrested the night before.
The associates were allegedly attempting to break into the PD’s outdoor storage area “used to house large items, such as bicycles and e-bikes when they are seized as evidence.”
Attleboro is not the only Bay State police department dealing with unruly teenage e-bike rider behavior.
The Falmouth Police Department, in particular, issued an advisory last month on juvenile bicycle and e-bike safety, outlining state regulations around the increasingly popular vehicles.
“With warmer weather here, we’re seeing an increase in unsafe bicycle and e-bike operation—particularly involving juveniles,” the Falmouth PD stated in a Facebook post.
Gov. Maura Healey has filed a bill that would require an annual registration, liability insurance, and an official Massachusetts license plate for high-speed motorized bicycles. That includes certain e-bikes, scooters, and mopeds.
The bill would also ban the emerging products from bike lanes and walking and biking paths.
“Micromobility is already a part of how people get to work, school and around their communities,” Healey said in a statement last month, “but right now, the rules are unclear and inconsistent. We are seeing too much reckless behavior, more crashes and close calls, and too many people, especially pedestrians and young riders, are at risk.”
In April, the Longmeadow Police Department stated that it had “seen a massive surge of e-bikes on our streets lately,” as it tried to clear up confusion between e-bikes and mopeds.
Massachusetts defines e-bikes as vehicles with operable pedals, a motor of 750 watts or less, and a maximum assisted speed of 20 mph.
“THE BOTTOM LINE: If your ‘e-bike’ functions like a motorcycle or scooter, you must follow moped laws,” Longmeadow PD stated in a Facebook post. “Riding an unregistered, high-speed vehicle without a license puts you, and our community, at risk.”
That came after an incident in Milford in late March, when police there responded to a call about a 15-year-old who crashed into a motor vehicle, marking the seventh e-bike-related incident in 10 days.
“We are once again urging our community to educate your children of the significant safety risks to riders and pedestrians if proper laws and safety precautions are not taken,” Milford Police Chief Robert Tusino said in a statement at the time. “If this trend continues, it will unquestionably result in tragedy.”
_________________
©2026 MediaNews Group, Inc.
Visit at bostonherald.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.