TAMPA, Fla. -- Mayor Bob Buckhorn wants to resurrect a controversial law that would give Tampa police officers the authority to impound vehicles of people trying to pick up prostitutes.
The law was repealed by city council last year, however, following court rulings determining that similar vehicle seizure laws in other Florida municipalities were illegal because they didn't provide adequate notice to owners and lacked due process, among other issues.
But Buckhorn's legal staff says recent court rulings have resolved language that rendered sections of the city's previous law unconstitutional, and today they will ask city council to approve a proposed ordinance that would put the impound law back on the books.
Some council members say they support his proposal, others have reservations.
"Right now, I'm leaning toward supporting it, but I still have some questions about how it would work," Councilwoman Lisa Montelione said Wednesday.
The proposed ordinance, if approved by the council, would also give police officers the authority to impound cars and other vehicles used in street-level drug sales.
Those charged under the impound law would be required to pay a $500 penalty to get their vehicles out of a lot. Defendants would have the ability to challenge the impound charges before a county circuit court judge. If a court hearing isn't scheduled within five business days, the vehicle would be released to its owner, with no penalty charged.
As a councilman in 1997, Buckhorn proposed the vehicle impound law as part of an all-out assault on prostitution that included a package of law enforcement initiatives.
Thousands of vehicles were seized under the impound rule, which netted the police department an average of $400,000 a year, according to city estimates. The money was to buy police equipment and fund training for officers.
Buckhorn said the impound law took huge bite out of street-level prostitution and drug sales in afflicted neighborhoods because it used "public shame" as a crime deterrent.
"You'll have to explain to your wife or boss why you lost your vehicle," he said recently.
But the city stopped enforcing the law in 2003, following a Florida 4th District Court of Appeal decision stemming from a lawsuit filed against city of Hollywood that challenged the legality of a similar law. In that case, the appeal court ruled that Hollywood's ordinance clashed with state laws, which allow for seizing cars only when a felony is committed.
Even though the city repealed the law, Tampa police officers were still able to seize vehicles of suspected drug dealers and other illegal activities under a state law.
The city council meets at 9 a.m. in old City Hall at 315 E. Kennedy Blvd. in downtown.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
