Denver voters on Tuesday defeated a ballot initiative that would have significantly restricted police discretion on whether to impound cars driven by unlicensed drivers.
Initiative 300 had prompted opposition from an array of civic and political leaders. They told voters the initiative would unnecessarily tie up police resources and become a costly bureaucratic burden. Opponents also said it was a thinly veiled attack against illegal immigrants.
In returns posted about an hour after the polls closed at 7 p.m., the initiative had garnered the support of 32 percent of voters and was opposed by about 68 percent.
Supporters had said a lenient attitude toward unlicensed drivers puts law-abiding citizens at risk and argued that impound fees would help pay for enforcement.
Mayor John Hickenlooper used some of his campaign funds to finance robo-calls in which he urged voters to defeat the initiative. The City Council, at the urging of Councilman Doug Linkhart, approved a proclamation urging voters to defeat the initiative.
In the calls, the mayor labeled the initiative “deceptive” and said it would require the city to spend $1.6 million annually on extra police resources and increased towing costs.
A similar initiative passed last year, but the city attorney’s office advised officials the ballot measure was clumsily worded and did not achieve what its supporters intended.
“This time around, we were a lot more organized,” said Councilman Paul Lopez, who had urged defeat.
Dan Hayes, who pushed the 2008 initiative, said this year’s effort would have cleaned up the language and would have required impound enforcement to begin.
“They used propaganda to win,” Hayes said, referring to fliers that said drivers would get their car towed if they lost or forgot their wallet and would have to pay $2,500 bond to get their car back.
While a person might have their car towed, a bondsman would post the bond for a $400 fee, Hayes said. He said he next would push to get the initiative before voters in Lakewood.
City law already prohibits unlicensed driving, but that law gives police discretion on when to impound. This year’s initiative would have allowed discretion only when police found “convincing corroborating identification,” proof of insurance and can show a license “of record.”
When an officer found such identification, a summons would be issued. The driver would had 10 working days to present a valid license, or the car would be impounded.
To have cars released from impound, drivers would have to pay $200 and post a $2,500 bond. The bond would be forfeited if the car was driven by an unlicensed driver in a year.
Christopher N. Osher: 303-954-1747 or cosher@denverpost.com
