COLORADO SPRINGS — There is a change of tactics in the works to go after street racers and drivers who elude police in Colorado Springs. A proposal before Colorado Springs City Council adds street racing and eluding to the city's "nuisance vehicle" ordinance.
“We’re not worried about who was driving,” said Colorado Springs Police Commander, David Edmondson. An identifiable vehicle spotted racing and/or eluding police gets pulled into the civil courts under the proposal.
For a first offense there is a warning sent to the person who registered the car. If there is a lien or lease the person, or company holding the lien is also notified. In other cities with similar enforcement the lien sometimes brings a consequence without going to court. "Would go in and actually take the car back as a violation of their contract," said Edmondson. A second strike gets a date in civil court. "Civilly seizing the vehicle through a judicial process," said Edmondson. Civil court does not issue fines, but the process is complicated and can get costly. Repeated violations typically increase fees.
Leaders with Colorado Springs Police, Traffic Division did do research on other cities with similar enforcement. Those cities are seeing success.
Colorado Springs City Council will formally vote on the proposal in a couple of weeks. Early indications show they support the measure.
