Just to be clear, "putting on miles" with a club doesn't mean that you are a patch holder with that club, it means that you rode with some members and shared beers on runs.
I think part of the problem with things like this being justified is that the people that work safely in an office that hires nobody with criminal records where many are passive and they feel safe and protected away from all the 'evil' are in control of our media and public perspective. Others share similar lifestyles and understand this perspective even more.
That somehow anyone around anyone 'bad' in any way must be choosing to go down a negative path. Somehow the negative aspects of our society are supposed to magicly change while the 'good guys' never associate or find ourselves anywhere near them to give any influance or otherwise have a positive impact on thier lives.
Simply having a friend that lives with someone of interest, and visiting them, or if your a strong willed individual your bad. Good guys are passive and submissive, always avoiding and hiding safely in thier homes far from anyone bad or at thier job making a living. No good guy not a cop has a strong demeanor or morals or ideas that they are passionate about or gets involved with scum.
So guilty by association is common simply because we as a society and our media paint the image that anyone who is a good guy avoids every aspect of society that could be suspect of any wrong doing. It disgusts me that people want problems to 'just go away' yet look down on good people around the problems in a position to fix some of them or change some for the better.
After all according to this perspective there is no grey areas in society, someone is either a bad guy or a good guy. No good guy has bad guy family members, associates, friends, or co-workers, or anyone they run across that enjoys a similar hobby to them. Choosing to be a good guy puts you in a safe bubble that as long as your a pascifist that hides and sneaks around with no assertiveness and remains submissive not just physicaly but mentaly to any and all authority allows you to remain a good guy. This is our perspective through the law and media we allow to exist of the ideal good guy.
So people like this 'bad guy' are seen as unfortunate but just results for scum that chose to associate with 'bad guys' and therefore was one himself.