DUI Checkpoints, Racist?

Photo:
USimmigrationsupport.org

Olympic Park Neighborhood Council's first meeting of the year tonight became heavily charged with emotional and politically driven comments when the South Central Neighborhood Council requested support for its sobriety checkpoint resolution, which would put an end to car confiscations at sobriety checkpoints.

OPNC rejected the resolution based on its disagreement with the phrasing and structure of the initiative.

SCNC's resolution - which is seeking support from 3 neighborhood councils for introduction to the City Council - is intended to end the seizure of vehicles from unlicensed drivers at sobriety checkpoints.

The initiative targets city laws that require law enforcement officers to impound cars from low-income, undocumented individuals who need the vehicle for work. These people pay fees for the minimum period of 30 days that the car is in the impound lot, an action supporters called legal theft and a revenue-generating ploy, rather than a safety measure.

Checkpoints are set up in low-income neighborhoods at odd times and hours when sobriety is not typically a problem, the group said.

OPNC members argued they are in support of the cause but not of the resolution's wording. The group was particularly concerned with a section that reads: "In addition, the South Central Neighborhood Council also opposes the confiscation of cars of unlicensed drivers at traffic stops." This statement bleeds into other areas of state and federal laws that the group believed should be tackled separately, if at all.

The final 7-3 (awaiting verification) vote against support of the measure left no room for amendment of the proposal's wording. President Peter Schulberg, however, assured the group they are welcome to reintroduce it to the board at a later meeting.

Read the resolution at:
http://www.immigrationcoalition.org/component/content/article/167-south-central-neighborhood-council-resolution.html