Staff Reports
The scene on Golden Gate Parkway in Naples was textbook reckless entitlement — a 15-year-old, later identified as Kyle Vincent Siemon, tearing up sidewalks and performing stunts on an electric dirt bike while rush-hour traffic fought to survive around him. Neighbors and drivers who watched this could see a clear disregard for public safety, and local deputies were right to step in. This wasn’t a youthful mistake; it was a dangerous show of invincibility in a packed public corridor.
According to Collier County deputies, officers first spotted the teen just before 6 p.m. and attempted a traffic stop after seeing the stunts and reckless speeding. Rather than cooperate, he fled, reportedly reaching speeds close to 70 miles per hour as he weaved through heavy traffic, jumped sidewalks, and repeatedly looked back at pursuing units. Dashcam video of the episode shows how brazen the flight was and why deputies had to weigh the public safety risk of continuing a high-speed pursuit.
Because the situation became so hazardous to innocent motorists and pedestrians, deputies prudently terminated their pursuit — a judgment call that likely prevented a far worse outcome. The boy’s escape ended when his e-dirt bike got stuck in a ditch near Santa Barbara Boulevard and Recreation Lane, where deputies arrested him without incident. He now faces a felony charge of fleeing and eluding law enforcement, a reminder that juvenile misbehavior can carry serious consequences.
Let’s be blunt: this is a parenting and cultural failure as much as it is an enforcement problem. Too many kids are raised thinking the rules are optional and that social media clout or adrenaline excuses endangering other people. If we want safer streets we have to rebuild a culture of responsibility where parents, schools, and communities make clear that putting lives at risk for a video or a thrill is unacceptable.
I applaud the deputies for making the difficult call to protect the public rather than pursue glory — law enforcement’s job is to keep citizens safe, not to win social media points. Sheriff Kevin Rambosk warned that the teen showed “no regard for public safety,” and that assessment is right on target; officers who back off to prevent more carnage deserve our support, not second-guessing from soft-on-crime advocates. We should demand both prudence in the field and accountability after the fact so the message is loud and clear.
This incident also exposes a regulatory gap: high-powered electric dirt bikes that can hit highway speeds shouldn’t be treated like toys for minors to ride through neighborhoods. Parents must stop ignoring the obvious danger of unleashing such machines on public roads, and lawmakers should consider sensible rules that make clear who can ride, where they can ride, and what training and liability are required. Enforcement means insisting on accountability rather than shrugging when a flashy stunt ends up threatening lives.
Hardworking Americans who pay taxes and care for their communities deserve streets where families can walk and drivers can commute without dodging maniacs on two wheels. Support your local deputies, hold kids and parents to a higher standard, and insist our leaders stop romanticizing risk and start protecting the public. If we want safer neighborhoods, it’s time for consequences, common sense, and a return to personal responsibility.
