Illegal Aliens Call Drivers Licenses Unfair
From inland Southern Californias Press-Enterprise:
Sofia Moreno, with United Democrats, holds sign warning drivers of a Perris police checkpoint ahead.
Immigrant advocates say crackdown on unlicensed drivers unfair
By JULISSA McKINNON
May 15, 2010Adrianna Castellon, 16, stood on the sidewalk of a busy Moreno Valley street on a recent school night, yelling at cars rushing past.
"Checkpoint! Checkpoint ahead!" she screamed. "Turn back while you can!"
The high school student was among protesters hoping to help illegal immigrants whose vehicles were about to be impounded by police because they were driving without a license. California law got tougher in 1993, requiring a social security card and other identification to get a license and barring most illegal immigrants from applying.
Isnt that outrageous! Imagine having to have identification before being allowed to get a license which allows you to drive a lethal weapon. This is just like Nazi Germany.
Now the stricter license requirements and a rising number of checkpoints across the Inland area and state are stirring controversy that has reached a fever pitch in some cities with a large Latino population.
Critics say most Inland checkpoints economically punish illegal immigrants whose cars often are impounded for 30 days 52; the maximum time allowed 52; and can ill afford the approximately $2,000 to retrieve the vehicle. Protesters point out that drunken drivers usually lose their car for only one day. They say racial profiling is at play where checkpoints are placed.
Inland authorities said softer penalties, such as citations, for unlicensed drivers don57;t work because many illegal immigrants lack identification and can57;t be found if they skip court. Police say impounding cars is needed to deal with drivers without licenses, who account for about 40 percent of the nation57;s hit-and-run crashes based on statistics of hit-and-run drivers who were caught. And police say that traffic volume, not a neighborhood57;s racial composition, determines checkpoint locations.
The article doesnt bother to mention that these illegal aliens also do not bother to have auto insurance, which is required in California.
Under community pressure, a few cities have dropped month-long car confiscation for a first-time unlicensed driving offense and instead hand out citations or do a one-day tow
So that these wonderful people can continue to drive on the streets without insurance and ruin law-abiding peoples lives. Such as:
Lee Chauser, pulled aside recently at a Perris checkpoint, said an unlicensed driver once hit him.
"He almost killed me 70; He rear-ended me going 35 mph," the 64-year-old Hemet man said. "The government needs to find a way for the (illegal immigrants) to get trained and drive legally."
Again, still no mention of the lack of insurance. If we can be required by law to have health insurance which (in a sane world) would affect no one but ourselves, why cant illegal aliens be required to have car insurance?
Activists and illegal immigrants such as Elder Cabrera, a 40-year-old Corona resident, say month-long impounds are too harsh
The cars should be impounded until the owner can produce a valid drivers license and proof of insurance. And until he has paid his fine for driving without these legal requirements
Why should they ever get their cars back otherwise?
Later this year, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is set to hear arguments on a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of California57;s 30-day impound law.
Surely this is a lawsuit brought by the ACLU. Who, after all, support the right of illegal aliens to drive without a license or insurance over the rights of American citizens to use the roads that we pay for with our taxes without fear of having our lives destroyed by foreigners.
Lest we forget, the ACLU is a taxpayer subsidized 501c3 charity.
A few cities around the state have eased towing policies for unlicensed drivers. These include Cathedral City in the Riverside County, San Francisco and the Los Angeles County cities of Huntington Park and Bell Gardens.
Cathedral City police Lt. Chuck Robinson said his department stopped 30-day impounds partly because of community outcry. Another motivation was a federal court ruling in Oregon that found impounding the cars of the unlicensed for 30 days violated the Fourth Amendment, which protects against "unreasonable search and seizure."
What is "unreasonable" about it? And since when does the Fourth Amendment protect foreigners?
Cathedral City police now issue citations to unlicensed drivers and allow them 15 to 20 minutes to turn the vehicle over to a licensed driver, a practice allowed by state laws. Repeat offenders could face a one-day tow or 30-day impound, Robinson said.
How wonderful. And when your wife and children are killed by an unlicensed and uninsured illegal alien, where do you go to complain? Where is your community outcry?
Other Inland authorities, such as San Bernardino Police Chief Keith Kilmer, say they know immigrant advocates want an end to month-long impounds for the unlicensed but the tough penalty is important.
"What we57;ve found is a large number of our hit-and-runs end up involving unlicensed drivers," Kilmer said.
Nitpicker. Besides, why run when there is no way to exact any kind of legal reparations from you?
Checkpoint opponents say 30-day impounds cause illegal immigrants to lose jobs. Some have moved to cheaper dwellings to afford $1,500-plus in tow company fees and $150-plus in police fees to retrieve vehicles.
Oh, the heartbreak. Never mind that in their own countries they would be thrown in prison for being in the country illegally.
In cities with large immigrant populations such as Perris, Moreno Valley and San Bernardino, organizers monitor law enforcement websites daily for announcements of checkpoints. At the start time, they rove the city until they find it. Then they alert hundreds to the location via text message70;.
It is illegal to warn oncoming drivers about radar guns. Surely this is illegal as well. But, then again, so is living in this country without a visa or green card.
John Edwards was right. There are two Americas. One for those who play by the rules and pay their taxes.
And one for everyone else.