02/08/1989 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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e IV. LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES OF JANUARY 30, 1989 Mr. Rutan reported that a large number of bills presently before the Legislature involve individuals' rights and while the Legislative Committee recommended support of the staff positions on some of those bills, councilors may have concerns. Ms. Bascom reported recelvlng several telephone calls regarding HB 2250, which would expand police authority to stop an individual. Mr. Rutan said the intent is to provide peace officers with the tools necessary to conduct their jobs efficiently. To avoid potential abuse, the quality of selection and training assume great importance. Answering a question from Ms. Bascom, Mr. Sercombe said the forfeiture ordinances of Linn County and Springfield that were recently held to be unlawful were not held unlawful on constitutional grounds, but on there being insufficient statutory authority for the City and County to adopt the type of ordinances they adopted. He anticipated that the problem would be remedied in the Legislative session under a State forfeiture bill. Ms. Ehrman expressed concern about the bill. She questioned a police officer's authority to detain an individual during a preventive stop and wondered whether the person's Miranda rights would still have to be given. She asked the council to delay making a recommendation and asked to review the actual bill. e Regarding HB 2251 (joinder of offenses), Ms. Ehrman said she was neutral because the power not to allow severance of offenses already exists. Ms. Ehrman considered the body wire bill, HB 2252, somewhat controversial but likely to receive a large amount of support. Ms. Ehrman said she was not necessarily opposed to sex offender registration because she interpreted ~he bill as applying to people already convicted of a felony. Saying he shared Ms. Ehrman's concerns, Mr. Boles asked for council discussion of each bill individually before deciding whether to ratify it. Mr. Rutan recommended asking Lieutenant Vic Mann to summarize the bills in question. Mr. Holmer commented on his concern regarding the role of the Legislative Committee. To avoid having the council become too involved in political issues beyond those directly affecting the City, he suggested leaving the responsibility for debating the merits of the various bills with the Legislature and having the council vote on whether to accept the Legislative Committee's recommendations. Mr. Bennett said he was prepared to accept the recommendations of the committee. Mr. Boles again stated his preference to discuss the bills individually. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 8, 1989 Page 4