California A.G. Hits Hell’s Angels M.C.

Mar. 15, 1965 - The Hell’s Angels motorcycle club was described in a long-awaited report issued today by California Attorney General Thomas Lynch as a hoodlum grouop which poses a threat throughout California.

Lynch sited many incidents of crime and violence for which club members were responsible and warned: “The publication of this report serves notice on the Hell’s Angels that law enforcement will not tolerate their hoodlum activities in California.

“They no longer will be allowed to threaten the lives, peace, and security of honest citizens in our state.”

A set of plans outlined by Lynch includes a statewide identification system for club members and provides for an exchange of information about the Angels’ activities throughout California.

Lynch said an inventory of 466 Hell’s Angels showed they have criminal records indicating 874 felony arrests, 300 felony convictions, 1,682 midemeanor arrests, and 1,023 misemeanor convictions.

The club’s hoodlum activities, said Lynch, include gang assaults, gang rapes, gang fights, and destruction of property.

The report culminated six months of investigation by the Attorney General’s office, the California Highway Patrol, 22 district attorneys, 15 sheriffs, and 67 police chiefs. 

It was prepared at the request of State Sen. Fred Farr and prompted by the alleged rape of two teenage girls in Monterey last Labor Day weekend. 

The report said the organization originated in 1950 in Fontana and that the San Bernardino County chapter remains the “mother” organization.

Despite claims of national and international branches, only two associated clubs exist outside California, one in Phoenix and the other in Portland, the report said. 

“Probably the most universal common denominator in identification of Hell’s Angels is their generally filthy condition,” said the report. “Investigating officers consistently report that these people, both club members and the female associates, seem badly in need of baths.”

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