Good job Atlanta.

By MARY LOU PICKEL
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/29/08

A proposal that would allow police to seize vehicles from illegal immigrants could help remove egregious drivers from the roads, some metro police say.

"I think it has the possibility of being a good thing," said DeKalb County Police Department spokesman Officer J.T. Ware. The seizure powers might be best used to focus on habitual traffic offenders, he said.

The proposed law, House Bill 978, was approved by the state House of representatives this week. It still must pass the senate. The measure would allow police to seize cars of illegal immigrants who are involved in accidents or violate traffic laws.

While the proposal stimulated debate on the House floor, including questions about how police could identify illegal immigrants during a traffic stop, the reality is that police already impound cars.

"It's really not going to change anything," said Gwinnett County Police Corporal Illana Spellman.

"If they don't have a valid license, the vehicle is going to be impounded anyway."

The usual procedure in DeKalb and Gwinnett counties is to arrest those found driving without a license rather than issue a ticket. As part of that arrest, the vehicle is often impounded because the officer can't leave it on the side of the road. In some cases, if a relative or friend has a valid driver's license, the officer allows that person to drive the car home.

Illegal immigrants cannot get a valid Georgia driver's license because they don't have the proper paperwork.

If the seizure bill were enacted into law, it's an open question how a police officer would identify a driver as an illegal immigrant.

Police say it would likely be up to the jail to determine.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has officers in some jails who review jail records and determine which inmates are here illegally. That's the case in Gwinnett and DeKalb counties. Cobb County has a special program where every inmate's legal status is checked, no matter the charge.

Other jails don't have ICE officers, and it could take longer to determine legal status. For the system to work, jails and police would have to cooperate.

"You have to work out what the line of communication would be," said DeKalb County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Mikki Jones.

Frank Rotondo, executive director of the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police, opposes the legislation, saying it would make extra work for officers. In many cases there are hearings before property can be seized and there's lots of paperwork to fill out.

"It could be very time consuming," Rotondo said.