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    Administrator Jean's Avatar
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    Los Angeles - Activists Want to Help L.A. to Fight Lawsuit on Vehicle Impound Policy

    CHIRLA, LA Voice, represented by attorneys for the ACLU Foundation, filed papers Wednesday asking a judge to allow them to intervene and help the city defend the impound policy in court.

    By City News Servic
    5:44 am
    SouthGatePatch

    An immigrants-rights organization and a residents' group want to help the city of Los Angeles fight off a lawsuit by the government watchdog group Judicial Watch challenging the LAPD's policy liberalizing procedures for impounding cars of unlicensed drivers.

    The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles and LA Voice, represented by attorneys for the ACLU Foundation of Southern California, filed papers Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court asking a judge to allow them to intervene and help the city defend the impound policy in court.

    A hearing is scheduled Sept. 25 before Judge Terry Green.

    The suit filed May 16 by the Washington, D.C.-based Judicial Watch was the third suit filed in as many months challenging the policy. Plaintiff Harold Sturgeon of Los Angeles wants a judge to find that the department's impound policy is an unlawful use of taxpayer money specifically "to help unlicensed illegal aliens.''

    But according to the CHIRLA/LA Voice court papers, the impact on immigrants would be disproportionate.

    "In the past two decades, vehicle impoundments -- and in particular mandatory 30-day impoundments -- have had devastating impacts on working class and immigrant residents who rely on their cars to get to work, take their children to school and do all the necessary activities for which, in Los Angeles, a car is essential,'' the proposed intervenors' court papers state.

    "Worse still, an impoundment in many cases amounts to a de facto forfeiture as the steep fees associated with a 30-day impound often exceed that a low-income driver can pay, if not the value of the vehicle itself,'' according to the CHIRLA/LA Voice court papers.

    Law enforcement agencies have been criticized for using impounds to generate money and for targeting Latinos assuming they are less likely to be licensed, the CHIRLA/LA Voice court papers state. Some CHIRLA members themselves have been affected, their court papers state.

    Angelica Salas, CHIRLA's executive director, stated in a sworn declaration that many members feel stops for even minor violations can lead to deportations.

    "In addition, many of them feel disrespected and ashamed when the police stop them and make them take all of their belongings from their vehicles during an impoundment, especially when they have their families with them, including small children,'' Salas stated. ``In my experience, car impoundments are one of the main reasons why many members do not trust the police.''

    Expenses related to 30-day impoundments run as high as $2,000, according to the CHIRLA/LA Voice court papers.

    In February, the Police Commission, which provides civilian oversight of the LAPD, approved the policy to allow an unlicensed driver who is stopped for a moving violation, and who has valid identification, car registration, proof of insurance and a clean driving record, to avoid a mandatory 30-day impound of his or her vehicle.

    A driver who was at fault in an accident, or had a prior conviction for driving unlicensed, does not qualify for a shortened one-day impound.

    LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, who proposed the policy with the backing of immigrants' rights groups and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, said in May that the former policy was unfair to undocumented immigrants who cannot get drivers licenses.

    Beck has said the change was also an attempt to eliminate confusion by officers in the field over two conflicting laws regarding when to impound a vehicle and for how long.

    Between April 22, when Special Order 7 took effect, and May 8, mandatory 30-day impounds dropped by 45 percent compared to the same period in 2011, according to a statistic circulated by the union representing rank-and-file police officers, which opposes the policy.

    LAPD Cmdr. Andrew Smith said he could not verify that, but police personnel were doing an analysis of its towing numbers.

    "This is yet another example of the Los Angeles Police Department's unlawful use of taxpayer dollars to further Los Angeles' status as a sanctuary city,'' Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, said in a statement in May.

    "(The policy) is illegal and dangerous. Unlicensed drivers, whether unlawfully present aliens or not, are a menace to the public safety. The Los Angeles Police Department is once again putting politics and ideology before the safety of citizens, police officers and the rule of law.''

    Judicial Watch's suit was the third filed to challenge the relaxed impound policy.

    The Los Angeles Police Protective League, which represents more than 9,900 sworn officers, filed a similar lawsuit challenging the policy in April.

    A third suit filed by a group of civil rights attorneys challenges the policy on different grounds, arguing it is too harsh because it prevents the owners of vehicles from getting their cars back before 30 days when another driver who is not the owner was at fault for the violation and impound.

    The LAPD impounded about 30,000 vehicles last year. About 85 percent of those were for violations of a state vehicle code that mandates a 30-day impound.

    The city has filed a separate motion to dismiss Sturgeon's lawsuit and it is scheduled to be heard on Nov. 9. Lawyers for the city say that contrary to Sturgeon's claims, the impound policy does not violate the state Constitution or conflict with the state Vehicle Code.

    The city's attorneys also say the policy does not allow the release of a vehicle to an undocumented immigrant who is either unlicensed or ineligible to be licensed for failure to provide proof of lawful presence in the U.S.

    Activists Want to Help L.A. to Fight Lawsuit on Vehicle Impound Policy
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  2. #2
    Senior Member AngryTX's Avatar
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    "In addition, many of them feel disrespected and ashamed when the police stop them and make them take all of their belongings from their vehicles during an impoundment, especially when they have their families with them, including small children,''
    Yet, there's no shame when they flood emergency rooms, overcrowd schools, get services that should be reserved for citizens, etc., etc. Or, is it their own kids see them as criminals?

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