The Police Protective League and Judicial Watch, a conservative-leaning watchdog organization based in Washington, sued, arguing that the policy improperly attempted to supersede the state’s impound laws that gave some discretion to officers on whether to use the 30-day hold on a car or not.
Tyler Izen, president of the police union, said in an interview, “I always believed that what the chief was doing was not the solution to a problem that I agree needs to be addressed.”
“Letting people drive without driver’s licenses is reckless, and that’s what he was trying to allow,” Izen said.
Emphasizing that the union has not taken an official position on a bill passed this month by the state Legislature that would allow immigrants in the country illegally to receive licenses, Izen said, “we’ve made the decision that healthcare and education are humanitarian issues. We should make the decision whether a driver’s license … is a humanitarian issue as well.”