For the second consecutive year, Hells Angels leader George Christie Jr. was denied entry into the Ventura County Fair for attempting to violate a controversial event policy banning gang attire and gang tattoos.
Christie, 56, arrived at the Ventura fairgrounds about 5 p.m. Saturday with his wife and three children. When he tried to buy a ticket, a fair employee told him he would first have to remove his leather Hells Angels vest and cover his club tattoo.
In an interview Sunday, Christie, the biker group's national spokesman, said he politely refused and left. The longtime Ventura resident also said he would meet with his attorneys this week to discuss suing the fair board and the Ventura Police Department.
"This is a constitutional thing for one, but it goes far beyond that," Christie said. "This is not something I take lightly or something I just do on weekends. I'm a Hells Angel 24 hours a day. I've dedicated my life to it, and I equate that to religion."
Fair officials have said Christie and other Hells Angels are welcome at the event but must not wear their club attire.
Richard Tucker, a fair events manager, said Sunday that the discussion with Christie at the fair's entrance had been anticipated and was "relatively peaceful."
Hells Angels members have long argued they are a law-abiding motorcycle club and not a gang, as alleged by police. To support that claim, Christie often refers to a local judge's ruling last year that found there was no evidence that the group was a criminal street gang.
The fairgrounds battle started last summer when Christie and other Hells Angels members were denied entry into the Seaside Park event for wearing their club vests. The club then threatened to sue the fair board.
Facing litigation, the board rescinded its dress policy earlier this year but reinstated it last month after heavy lobbying by Ventura police officials.
The board's policy bars anyone wearing clothing, visible tattoos or other articles bearing the name or insignia of a criminal street gang from entering the state-owned, 62-acre fairgrounds. The policy identifies 20 street gangs, including the Hells Angels.
In Christie's case, fair personnel on Saturday asked that he remove his black club vest -- with the trademark winged skull and the words "Hells Angels" on the back -- and cover the winged skull tattoo on his forearm.
