Who better to write about one of the most intriguing groups of pop culture than one of its members. I am not Sonny Barger, accomplished author and businessman or Chuck Zito*, Hollywood actor and bodyguard to the stars. My name is Johnny Bart., Hells Angels Member, prisoner. The government claims I am a killer…. I know all about this lifestyle: from club supporter to club member; from fast motorcycles to faster women, all the way up to a 35 year prison sentence for a federally manufactured crime.

On one level or another it must be said that the media is the advertising arm of the government. Through repetitious propaganda and obfuscation the media molds the minds of the masses and creates a general feeling of discontent toward Hells Angels. This is usually effectuated by the use of labels that have attached to them negative connotations. For example, ”outlaw motorcycle gang.“ This would imply that each and every member of the club worked outside the law of each respective country.

Kobe Bryant’s situation and countless others do not make the National Basketball Association a criminal association. Nor does Rae Carruth’s involvement in murder make the National Football League a criminal organization. Yet, when legal issues arise for individual members of the ”Hells Angels“ the organization as a whole is termed a criminal one. The fact of the matter is, the majority of club members have legitimate occupations: from laborers and business owners to Hollywood actors and stuntmen.

The club was started after world war two by veterans of that war. The name of the club actually comes from a daring group of fighter pilots, the name ”Hells Angels“ emblazoned on the side of their airplanes. The motorcycle club Hells Angels was started because many veterans, upon their return home, felt alienated and displaced. In the end these men came together to start a brotherhood of motorcyclists.

Hells Angels was started by the flying Hells Angels, men who supposedly freed the world from the grips of tyranny! I’m sure the media wasn’t referring to a squadron of fighter pilots doing their job over the south pacific as an ”outlaw gang.“ The only plausible analogy that fits here is, exercise strength, honor, and virility in a governmental capacity and you’re a hero. Exercise these qualities in a nongovernmental capacity and you’re a villain.

The Hells Angels even went so far as to offer their services to then-president Lyndon B. Johnson, to aid the American troops in Vietnam. The members felt it was their duty as citizens of this country to eradicate the communist, red terror. Quite frankly, these are not the actions of an ”outlaw gang,“ but an honor bound duty of a patriotic band of brothers.

Presently this country is engaged in a program that labels individuals and groups that dissent against government policy as ”terrorist.“ This program is comparable to that of Bolshevik, Russia. There the term ”enemy of the state“ simply meant those who opposed the Bolsheviks. Yesterday’s ”enemy of the state“ is today’s ”terrorist.“ In conjunction with this is the systematic usurpation of civil liberties. The ultimate aim is to instill fear in the independent thinker and to crush the spirit of those who would exercise strength and virility.

   These virtues are no longer assets, they are seen as a threat to the government’s fragile power structure. The emasculation of all perceived opposition is the government’s goal. This usually happens by crushing the opposition through subversion of the law. This is why the government, through their propaganda machine, targets Hells Angels – it is seen as the last bastion of manhood in our society.

From ”outlaws“ to ”terrorists“ to the quintessential label of our time: ”racist.“ A climate has been created in this country where this label is more damaging than any other. Here, a child molester is in higher standing than a racist. To be a racist is akin to being the devil himself. Those who disseminate the information wield their ”racism“ sword to discredit and demonize the perceived opposition because they know there is no viable defense in the eyes of the gullible masses.

In almost every media article about the Hells Angels, the 1969 Rolling Stones concert at Altamont is alluded to support the claim that the organization as a whole is racist. There, the Hells Angels acted as security for the Rolling Stones. At one point during the concert, a black man in the front row pulled a gun and was then stabbed to death during the ensuing melee. A Hells Angel member was charged and later acquitted. Hells Angel, Sonny Barger, one of the club’s founders, had this to say of the incident: ”that black kid killed himself by pulling his gun. Pull a gun, get stabbed – that’s life.“

Does this mean the club as a whole is racist? My brothers would say no. This list includes my Puerto Rican brother, Buster; my Chinese brother, Steven; my Japanese brother, Fuki; and my many Mexican brothers! As for blacks being part of the club, we adhere to the same policy as the black motorcycle clubs that deny membership to whites. I call to memory the Ebony Wheels from Boston. The club respects them as men and calls them friends. They are welcome to Hells Angels’ functions and Hells Angels are welcome to their functions. Not only is there no animosity, there is uniformity in club policy.

Somewhere in the middle of all this is my story. If you were to read a newspaper on May 22, 1998, one day after my sentencing, the headlines would have read: ”Hells Angel“ gets 35 years for the murder of a rival gang member.“ Yet, I was neither indicted for, nor found guilty of murder. I was indicted for drugs only. Odd isn’t it?

As for the drugs, there was an approximate total of 48 ounces on Methamphetamine and 30 ounces of cocaine. Believe it or not, there was an oddity with the drugs as well; not one grain was ever consumed! Every last bit was taken to a government lab, tested and used for evidence. The reason for this is the government orchestrated the drug deals. They didn’t ”catch me in the act,“ they ”made the act.“ In the process, I was the star of their show.

These drug transactions took place after my many refusals to initially participate with the government (informant).  It was after many months that I finally agreed to engage in the government’s proposal.  Noteworthy is the fact that I never once claimed ignorance, I did break the drug laws when I finally agreed.  However, after I broke the law with a single drug transaction, I should have been arrested.  At that point I could have been imprisoned for no longer than five years for the initial deal of 3 ounces of Methamphetamine.  I was not arrested.  The government continued to orchestrate drug buys that would progressively increase the time I would have to spend in prison. Ultimately, instead of five years, I received a twenty-seven year sentence. 

At sentencing, after calculating my prison sentence for drugs, the judge enhanced my sentence due to a ”preponderance of the evidence“ that I murdered a rival gang member.  On his own accord, not by that of a jury through an indictment, I received a thirty-five year prison sentence.  No murder indictment, no evidence presented or rebutted, and no jury verdict.  Yet, every newspaper in the country said I was a murderer.  There I was, twenty-six years old, looking down the barrel of a virtual life sentence.  All this simply because the government, after accosting me, thought five years was not enough time for a Hells Angel.

By no means do I claim here that Hells Angels are really angels.  Of course individual members have had their run-ins with the law, there’s no question about that.  I simply make the point that the media and government continuously attack the club through a program of disinformation, overreaction, and overzealous prosecution.  We have our ways, we speak our minds, and we are bound by strength and honor.  It doesn’t matter if a Hells Angel is right or wrong, in our eyes, he’s right.  We live by a simple yet stringent code: ”If I lead, follow me.  If I retreat, kill me.  If I die, avenge me.“

The masses will continue to believe everything the media and authorities tell them to believe.  They’ll always be the good, little, programmed robots.  Guys like me will continue to serve inordinately long prison sentences for crimes the government thought-up and orchestrated.  The media will emblazon guys like me across the headlines, and endorse the government’s lies and trickery.  The Hells Angels will continue to grow in number and grow in character until the government outlaws its existence.  What happens after that can only be conjecture.  As for you, the next time Hells Angels make the headlines you’ll know there’s another side to the story.  You may even be able to see the truth through my eyes.

Johnny Bartolomeo #21270-038
United States Penitentiary
Lee County
Post Office Box 305
Jonesville, Virginia 24263-0305

*Footnote: Chuck Zito is no longer a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club.