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Chief: Legal challenges cleared for impound ordinance

By KYLE MARTIN

Hernando Today

Published: July 10, 2009

BROOKSVILLE - In searching for a better way to enforce city ordinance, Police Chief George Turner found his solution in the city of Sarasota.

The Sarasota ordinance that passed last year allows police to impound cars with loud stereos.

But it also generated a lawsuit sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union that claims the ordinance infringes on First Amendment rights. The Sarasota city attorney told the city council it could cost $20,000 in legal fees to defend against such a lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed in March, seeks to stop the enforcement of the ordinance and asks for damages equal to the fines and costs associated with the impoundment, plus attorney fees.

Rebecca Steele, an ACLU attorney on the case, described the lawsuit as more of a First Amendment issue. Impounding the car is the "icing on the cake," she said.

The case has since moved to federal court.

Locally, the Brooksville City Council tabled the ordinance when it first came up for discussion, saying impoundment for a first-time offense was too harsh. On Monday, they tentatively approved a revised version during a first reading.

That revised version, which is scheduled for a final reading July 20, allows for impoundment if it's a second violation or an outstanding ticket has not been paid in the past 30 days.

Turner said he had heard about the Sarasota lawsuit, but that the city's attorney had "looked into all the issues" and "cleared it."

He added the main purpose of the impound ordinance was not the noise, but "vice suppression," meaning drugs and prostitutes.

The city already has a noise ordinance, it's a matter of improving the enforcement of it, he said. Police have a simple database now inside their cruisers that alerts them if a driver has been previously cited in the city limits for violation of city code, including noise.

Information from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune was used in this report. Reporter Kyle Martin can be reached at 352-544-5271 or kmartin@hernandotoday.com.

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