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Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Close vote approves impounding noisy Peoria cars

6-5 decision will permit police to seize vehicles if music can be heard 75 feet away

By MOLLY PARKER

Of the Journal Star

PEORIA - The City Council narrowly adopted a new noise ordinance Tuesday night after numerous residents complained of cars driving by with music playing so loud that it rattled their windows and shook their pictures off the walls.

"It's not music that we hear. Maybe if we were listening and hearing the music, it wouldn't be so bad," said Peoria resident Nancy Mitchell. "It's the vibrating . . . It's the boom, boom, boom that you hear."

By a 6-5 vote, the council passed an ordinance that will allow police to confiscate and temporarily impound vehicles on the first offense for playing music that can be heard 75 feet away or more. That's about a quarter of the length of a football field.

The revised ordinance, which in different forms had been deferred twice since March, will require a person to pay about $100 in processing and towing fees on a first offense. A second offense will require payment of a $250 ticket and also allow for impoundment of the vehicle.

The ordinance trumps the city's previous noise rule, which charged violators a $200 fine if their music could be heard more than 50 feet away.

Neighborhood associations complained that the current ordinance wasn't doing much good. Police Chief Steve Settingsgaard said that's because the violators often had their fines waived in court because they couldn't pay, or they ignored the fine altogether.

Eventually, some of these violators ended up with a bench warrant for failure to pay, which resulted in unnecessary arrest records for the offenders, most often young black men, Settingsgaard said.

"If your position is an advocate for the young in Peoria, for the young African-American in Peoria," you should support this ordinance change, he said. "You're forced to be responsible or do the responsible thing and that can never become a warrant."

The ability to impound a vehicle puts teeth in the ordinance, Settingsgaard said, because the violator isn't likely to abandon their mode of transportation, particularly if it's been beefed up with an expensive stereo system.

Councilmen Gary Sandberg and John Morris were among those voting against the ordinance. Both expressed concerns about giving police the ability to seize private property, even if just temporarily, for an offense that is not a felony, let alone a misdemeanor.

Sandberg said he also worries about the language of the ordinance that says

music heard within 75 feet is a violation. To illustrate his point, Sandberg

played an iPOD nano with two small speakers at half volume from across

council chambers. It could easily be heard around the horseshoe.

Despite Sandberg's demonstration, Mayor Jim Ardis pleaded with the council

to support the ordinance.

"Our neighborhoods are begging us to do something, council. They're begging

us for help," he said.

Settingsgaard challenged that his officers would use reasonable discretion

in writing tickets.

"In 26 years, my experience has not been police officers standing on the corner listening for the faintest noise in the distance," Settingsgaard said.

This ordinance, he noted, is aimed at people who stuff their entire trunks or back seats with speakers and drive around town "to show the world" the system they purchased and just how loud they can play it.

Also voting no were Councilman Chuck Grayeb, Bill Spears and Clyde Gulley. Grayeb said he thought the current ordinance was being unnecessarily weakened since it changed the violation distance from 50 to 75 feet.

Supporting the ordinance along with Ardis were Councilmen Patrick Nichting, Bob Manning, Eric Turner, Barbara Van Auken and George Jacob.

Molly Parker can be reached at 686-3285 or  <mailto:mparker@pjstar.com>

mparker@pjstar.com.