FRESNO VEHICLE SEIZURES GET NOD

Vehicles In Drug And Prostitution Cases Could Be Taken, Sold Under Proposed
Law.

The Fresno City Council pushed forward Tuesday with a plan to give police
the authority to seize and sell vehicles that are used by motorists who
solicit prostitutes or sell drugs. But the 6-1 vote didn't come easy.

The reason: No one told the City Council that police officials and city
lawyers had been working on a vehicle-seizure ordinance for three years.

A war of words broke out when the council debated whether to immediately
support Council Member Henry T. Perea's vehicle-seizure proposal or wait 60
days for police officials to return with their plan.

Perea warned his colleagues a vote against him meant they were being soft
on criminals.

Council Member Jerry Duncan argued that the city needs to get rid of
prostitutes and drug dealers, but Perea's proposal wasn't ready for council
action because it didn't have police input.

In the end, the council voted to wait until police officials return with
their research, as long as it includes elements of Perea's proposal to
craft an ordinance after one in Oakland. Only Calhoun voted no.

Prostitutes ply their trade in many areas of the city, including Blackstone
Avenue, Belmont Avenue, Motel Drive and Parkway Drive. In 2002, a total of
372 people were arrested in connection with prostitution cases. In the
first six months of this year, 163 people were arrested.

Offenders get their vehicles impounded and face a potential misdemeanor
conviction, punishable by as much as six months in jail, a $1,000 fine or both.

Deputy Chief Darrell Fifield said the ordinance would be another law
enforcement tool because it would allow officers to seize vehicles used in
the commission of solicitation of prostitution or for acquiring or
attempting to acquire illegal drugs.

In addition, the city is looking at confiscating and selling vehicles of
motorists who illegally dump garbage in the streets, fields and alleys,
Fifield said.

Perea wanted the City Attorney's Office to craft an ordinance similar to
one in Oakland because he said it would save the city money -- city
staffers would not have to research the issue. He also said Oakland's
ordinance has withstood legal challenges.

"We need a heavy-handed approach," Perea said, because prostitution and
drug dealing erodes the fabric of the city and its neighborhoods.

Perea now fears the ordinance being researched by police and city lawyers
will have "loopholes" and set the city up for a lawsuit. "What's the point
if it is watered down?" he said.

Fifield and City Attorney Hilda Cantu Montoy said Oakland's ordinance could
pose constitutional issues. Though the American Civil Liberties Union
challenged the Oakland ordinance three years ago and lost in state courts,
other issues remain, they said.

The initial issue before the courts was narrowly defined -- did the Oakland
ordinance conflict with state law? The courts said no.

Though cities such as Sacramento, Los Angeles and Stockton have
vehicle-seizure ordinances, Fifield said it is important to research the
issue of due process -- can police sell a defendant's car even if the
person is not convicted? Also, is seizing and selling a vehicle an
excessive fine?

Other issues include whether it is legal for police to confiscate a car
from someone who is not the owner, and what happens if the car has no value
or the owner owes more than it is worth or is leasing it.