AURORA, Colo. — In the first few weeks since a new law went into effect, the Aurora Police Department impounded dozens of cars.
The new ordinance, Aurora Municipal Code 134-37, was passed on Sept. 23 during an Aurora City Council meeting. It says officers must have a car towed away and impounded if the car's registration is not up-to-date, the driver doesn't have a valid driver's license and they don't have insurance. It's a three-strike rule designed to increase compliance with driving rules and regulations.
The owner can't retrieve the car until all three violations are fixed.
In the first 12 days of November, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman said, 52 cars were impounded under the new law.
"It's a problem much bigger than people think," Coffman said at the council meeting in September. "I hope this sends a strong message."
At the same meeting, councilmember Crystal Murillo raised concerns that the law would create an even bigger burden for people who don't have valid registration, insurance or a driver's license because they don't have money to pay for the basic necessities of owning a car.
"If cost is an issue then the cost is just going to keep piling up and they're never going to be able to pay for insurance, registration, et cetera," Murillo said at the meeting.
The ordinance applies only to cars that are pulled over by police. APD cannot impound someone's car just because it's parked somewhere with an expired license plate.