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Towing proposal decried as biased
By George Houde and Ray Quintanilla, Chicago Tribune. George Houde is a freelance reporter. Ray Quintanilla is a Tribune staff reporter

August 8, 2007

Alarmed by what they said was another ordinance aimed at Latinos, about 400 demonstrators gathered Tuesday night at Carpentersville Village Hall to protest a proposal to impound the vehicles of drivers pulled over without a valid license or proof of insurance.

"We continue to see the village promote anti-immigrant ordinances, and we have to say, 'Enough,'" said Rogelio Realzola, a longtime resident and businessman who was among the protesters outside Village Hall. "This is oppressing our community rather than making it grow."

The Carpentersville Community Alliance, a Hispanic business group, organized the protest after Trustee Judy Sigwalt put the proposed ordinance on the agenda for Tuesday's Village Board meeting.

The ordinance, similar to laws in nearby communities, would impose fines and allow the impoundment of vehicles of uninsured or unlicensed drivers, in addition to state-imposed sanctions. The ordinance also would apply to those arrested for driving under the influence.

The measure is the latest immigration-related issue in Carpentersville, where a proposed crackdown on undocumented workers has created large protests and a deep division in the community. The village is about 40 percent Hispanic.

Sigwalt said the impoundment measure is needed to crack down on drunken driving and those who operate vehicles without a driver's license or insurance.

"Let the towing company take those vehicles," she said before the meeting.

Outside Village Hall on Tuesday night, Laura Zambrano, who ran unsuccessfully for trustee in the April election, said the latest proposal in Carpentersville was dismaying.

"These are crazy ideas," Zambrano said. "I hate to use the word 'discrimination,' but these ideas seem to target the same community over and over."

No action was expected on the ordinance Tuesday night. Also on the agenda was the proposed crackdown on illegal immigration.

For the fourth time in recent weeks, Village President Bill Sarto was expected to try to persuade trustees to abandon the proposal, which would punish businesses that hire undocumented immigrants and landlords who rent to them. A federal court recently ruled that a similar measure in Hazleton, Pa., is unconstitutional.

Sigwalt said she and other trustees want to delay action on the measure until after the U.S. Supreme Court can review the Hazleton ordinance.

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rquintanilla@tribune.com

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