Portland cracks down on unlicensed drivers

PORTLAND – Police in Maine’s biggest city are getting serious about impounding the cars of people who drive after drinking or after a suspension.

Since early last month, Portland police officers have impounded seven vehicles compared to 10 for all of last year and 14 the year before that.

“The goal is to keep unlicensed drivers off the road, so those turnpike accidents don’t happen in the city,” said Sgt. Gary Hutcheson, who heads the department’s traffic division. Hutcheson was referring to fatal crashes in the past year that have focused attention on drivers who lose their licenses for bad driving but get behind the wheel anyway.

Last summer, trucker Scott Hewitt was driving on a suspended license when he was involved in a crash that killed Tina Turcotte of Scarborough. In May, John P. Allen was driving with a suspended license when he was involved in a crash that killed Harold Weisbein of Topsham.

Portland’s City Council passed an ordinance in 2003 to allow officers to impound a vehicle for up to 30 days. Storage and administrative fees must be paid to retrieve an impounded car.

The Maine Legislature has rejected proposals for a state impoundment law because of concerns about innocent people being hurt.

So far, Hutcheson said, about half the seized vehicles actually belong to the driver. The rest belong to either family or friends.

The car’s owner can appeal to get the car back.

That’s what happened when Sharyn Dow’s car was seized with her grandson behind the wheel. Paul Hooper, 24, was charged in Portland with driving drunk and driving without a license; he apparently took Dow’s 2000 Dodge Neon without her permission, police said.

Dow, who got her car back, agrees with Portland’s get-tough approach but she wishes they could have avoided penalizing her in the process.

“If someone’s caught driving and they have been drinking, take them off the road – not my car, but just him,” Dow said. “I don’t think it’s fair if they’ve got somebody else’s vehicle, to lock it up right then and there.”

Hutcheson said the city also is cracking down on people who knowingly allow unlicensed drivers to use their cars. Allowing unlawful use of a motor vehicle is itself is a crime, he said.