Columnist John Kass recently told the story (Page 3, Nov. 6) of an out-of-state woman who has having difficulty getting an explanation for why her stolen car–after being recovered by Chicago police–was released to the wrong person at the auto pound.
Although the car’s owner was described as getting “the old City Hall runaround,” we took this allegation with utmost seriousness from the beginning. But it did take us time to piece together the facts.
When the car was stolen in Indiana last July, the keys and registration were stolen with it. After the car was recovered in October on the South Side (but before the true owner could be notified of the recovery), the vehicle was released to a woman who came into the pound with a forged registration (and the keys) that convinced the workers she was the legitimate owner.
We do not know if the woman who redeemed the car was aware it had been stolen or herself was victimized by someone she wrongly believed could legally provide her with the vehicle. This cannot be determined until she is questioned by police, who are looking for her and the car.
But I must disagree that the car’s true owner is, as Mr. Kass put it, “a nobody, so she was treated like a nobody.” The Department of Streets and Sanitation investigates every complaint it receives, and it does whatever possible to correct any errors made by its workers or our vendor. Each auto pound has a large sign urging anyone not receiving satisfaction to call a special hotline (312-744-4720).
More than 100,000 cars will be towed in Chicago this year because they were illegally parked, used in crimes or stolen and have been recovered by police. Since the towing system is run by human beings, there are occasional mistakes despite our best efforts to prevent them. When they do occur, we always move quickly to correct them, and we do not consider any taxpayer to be a “nobody.”