Motorcycle Helmet Law Roars In at Midnight--but Enforcement? : Safety: The CHP says it isn’t extending a grace period. Other enforcement agencies are waiting before cracking down. Some Valley riders threaten to fight it.

California motorcyclists who defy the mandatory helmet law that takes effect at midnight tonight may be issued a ticket for a moving violation or get off with a warning--depending on which law enforcement agency gets to the violator first.

The California Highway Patrol said Monday that despite earlier reports to the contrary, it will not provide the 90-day grace period that routinely accompanies many new traffic laws and will begin issuing citations at one minute after midnight.

But the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department have said they will provide a grace period during which helmetless motorcyclists or their passengers will get only a warning. The Sheriff’s Department will observe a 15-day grace period, while Los Angeles police will allow 30 days.

For motorcyclists, the issue of when enforcement begins only adds confusion to a law that has generated years of controversy.

Motorcyclists said they have heard reports for months that all law enforcement agencies would provide a grace period.

Keith Ball, editor of Easy Rider, a widely circulated magazine aimed at “lifestyle� motorcyclists least likely to wear helmets voluntarily, said his Agoura Hills-based magazine recently published an article quoting CHP spokespersons who said they would provide a grace period.

“I think it depends on who you talk to and the time of day,� said Ball, a longtime motorcycle rider who plans to begin wearing a helmet when the law goes into effect Wednesday.

A first offense will cost motorcyclists $100, a second $200 and a third $250. The tickets will not, however, count as points that lead to suspension of a motorist’s driver’s license, said Officer Al Michel, a spokesman for the CHP’s Los Angeles County headquarters in Glendale.

Michel said, however, that the CHP has maintained all along that it would provide no grace period in enforcement of the helmet law. He said the law has generated enough publicity and widespread media attention that a grace period is unwarranted.

“At this time, it is hard to find anyone who doesn’t know about the law, especially motorcyclists,� he said.

He said most law enforcement agencies normally provide a 30- or 90-day grace period to allow enough time to educate the public on a new law. Michel acknowledged that there may be some confusion among motorcyclists who expect a grace period for the helmet law.

“There is no written policy saying we have to provide a 90-day or 30-day grace period,� he said.

Violators cited by the CHP will be allowed to ride away helmetless after receiving the ticket, Michel said.

But if a motorcyclist continues to defy the law, a patrol officer can seize the motorcycle until the rider gets a helmet. It will be up to individual officers to determine if riders are deliberately and repeatedly ignoring the law, he said.

For Marty Ruthman, 33, owner of an auto repair shop in Sherman Oaks, the question of whether the law will be enforced Jan. 1 or Feb. 1 is moot. He said he never plans to wear a helmet and, if need be, will go to jail fighting the law.

“I don’t feel they have the right to tell me to wear a helmet,� Ruthman said. “It comes down to . . . being forced to do something I don’t want to do.�

He and several friends--all avid Harley-Davidson riders--said they perceive the helmet law as an invasion of their constitutional freedoms. Some have signed petitions asking Gov. Pete Wilson to repeal the law. Others plan to join a group of motorcyclists on New Year’s Day for the “Day of Defiance Ride�--a caravan of motorcyclists who plan to ride from Los Angeles to Sacramento on New Year’s Eve and return on Interstate 5 after midnight--helmetless--in defiance of the law.

They argue that a helmet impairs hearing and peripheral vision, making it more dangerous to ride with a helmet than without. But the bottom line, Ruthman said, is that they don’t want to be told they must protect themselves.

“I’m not going to get down on anyone who wants to wear one. I just don’t want to be told to do so,� said Paul Wilson, 34, of Van Nuys, a mechanic at Ruthman’s auto shop and a longtime motorcyclist.

Pete Kokiousis, 40, who owns six motorcycles and routinely wears a helmet, said the law “is another form of Big Brother looking over your shoulder.� But he urges all motorcyclists to wear helmets, saying they protect riders from head injuries.

“I too like to ride with the wind in my face, but common sense will tell you to wear a helmet,� he said.

Ball said he expects that those who defy the law will be people who consider motorcycling a lifestyle and not just a weekend hobby. Others, such as Ball, will wear a helmet but continue to complain about it.

“Most guys are just going to wear them, but that doesn’t mean they are going to give up fighting the law,� he said.

Times staff writer Leslie Berger contributed to this story.