After the controversy surrounding the West Coast Choppers logo, James found himself in another public scandal involving white power imagery. As he went through a divorce with Bullock, a photo of him wearing a Nazi hat and giving a salute started circulating. His attorney, Joe Yanny, defended James by stating that the hat was a gag gift from his Jewish grandfather. Yanny expressed his hope that this would not be such a newsworthy story as to continuously invade James’ privacy and basic rights.
However, the incessant publicity from these scandals became overwhelming for James. Consequently, he made the decision to close the doors of the Long Beach West Coast Choppers shop in 2010. Ironically, earlier that same year, James had welcomed the attention and had positive words to say. The Long Beach Post reported on a ceremony where the city had named the street where his shop was located as West Coast Choppers Place. James expressed his gratitude, stating that he had always believed his shop was somewhat of a nuisance for the city and it was nice to be seen as an asset.