Novelty Helmet Blamed For Desert Hot Springs Motorcyclist’s Death

California Highway Patrol officers hope motorcyclists learn from a deadly accident that killed a local man.

Officer Joe Zagosky said Roger James Scott, 46, of Desert Hot Springs, was driving southbound on Thousand Palms Canyon Road, about 2 miles south of Dillon Road, on Sunday afternoon.

“For reasons not yet known, Scott’s motorcycle left the roadway and traveled onto the west dirt shoulder where Scott lost control of his 1997 Harley Davidson motorcycle and collided with the dirt berm bordering the dirt shoulder,” Zagorsky said.

Scott was thrown from his motorcycle and hit the ground, suffering a head injury that eventually took his life.

“Scott was wearing a novelty helmet at the time of the collision, which is not compliant (with the law),” Zagosky said.

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, compliant helmets make a difference.

In a study of fatal motorcycle crashes from 2000 to 2002, 51 percent of the riders who died were wearing a novelty helmet or no helmet, compared to 35 percent who were wearing helmets compliant with the law.

It didn’t stop there.

When the NHTSA tested novelty helmets that claimed they were compliant with the law, engineers found that they failed all or almost all of the safety performance requirements.

“Based on these tests, the agency concluded that novelty helmets will not protect motorcycle riders during a crash from either impact or penetration threats,” Zagorsky said. “Likewise, their chin straps are incapable of keeping the helmets on the heads of their users during crashes.”