ESCONDIDO: Protesters again call for the removal of police chief


By EDWARD SIFUENTES
Posted: March 26, 2010 7:04 pm | (136) Comments

Critics of Escondido's driver's license checkpoints on Friday once again called on police Chief Jim Maher to end the crackdowns and to step down if he refuses to do so.

Police checkpoints have long been criticized by Latino activists who say they disproportionately affect their community. That is because illegal immigrants, many of whom are Latinos, are barred by state law from having driver's licenses.

"It's depressing, sad and humiliating," said Enedina, an Escondido resident who joined more than 50 other people at a demonstration in front of City Hall.

The woman, who did not want her full name used because she is an illegal immigrant, said her car has been impounded twice because she does not have a driver's license.

She said she has to drive to take her children to school, church and after-school activities. She said she had to pay more than $3,500 in towing, storage and other fees to recover her car.

It is not the first time that activists have called for the chief's removal.

In April, members of El Grupo, an umbrella group of civil rights organizations, called on the city to replace Maher, saying his policies, especially his department's frequent use of driver's license checkpoints, had created an atmosphere of fear in the community.

At the time, both the police chief and the city's mayor rejected the call.

Activists, students and representatives of various advocacy groups attended Friday's rally, including Carmen Miranda, a community activist and outspoken critic of the checkpoints; Bill Flores, a retired assistant sheriff and member of El Grupo; and Tina Jillings, co-founder of the Vista-based Coalition for Justice, Peace and Dignity.

Maher said Friday the checkpoints have only one objective: safety.

"The checkpoints have nothing to do with race and everything to do with traffic safety," he said. "If they can find a better way to keep the streets of Escondido safe, I am willing to listen to them."

The chief has said that he supports granting licenses to undocumented immigrants under certain conditions. He said they should be required to have a criminal background check, and the document should look different from a regular license so it can't be used for any other purpose.

In an effort to reduce the number of hit-and-run crashes, the Police Department conducts dozens of checkpoints each year.

The department conducts two kinds of checkpoints, one aimed primarily at nabbing unlicensed drivers, the other at catching drunken drivers.

The driver's license checkpoints are the most troublesome to some Latino activists, who say the operations are really traps intended to ensnare illegal immigrants ---- a charge vigorously denied by police officials.

Miranda said the city should remove the police chief because his use of the checkpoints alienates and frightens Latino immigrants.

"We want the chief to focus on real issues," she said.

Maher said it is the activists who are dividing and frightening the community. He said the checkpoints are designed to make sure people have "a driver's license, insurance and are sober when they drive in Escondido."

Councilwoman Olga Diaz, who attended the rally, said she would prefer the department use other methods to keep the streets safe, such as saturation patrols in which police officers focus on catching drunken drivers.

"I don't like the way they (checkpoints) impact the community," she said.

Diaz said she does not believe the chief should be removed.

Maher said the checkpoints and saturation patrols are part of the department's comprehensive approach to traffic safety in the city.

"They are both effective," he said.

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