Corvette seizure prompts House bill retooling VIN mandate for antique vehicles – Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — Richard Martinez bought a restored 1959 Chevrolet Corvette for $50,000 from an Indiana dealer in 2016 that the Kansas Highway Patrol labeled as “contraband” that must be seized and destroyed under state law.
The Johnson County resident was sent a notice warning of the forfeiture action by KHP because a trooper discovered during a mandatory registration inspection a defect with a vehicle’s identification number. Martinez wasn’t aware of the problem, and law enforcement officers said there was no question he was an “innocent owner” of a car with VIN issues. Still, the Corvette was seized so it could go to a crusher.
Martinez filed a lawsuit in Johnson County District Court — a proceeding still active five years later. The district court scheduled a conference proceeding for next week.
In the meantime, the Kansas House voted Monday to approve a bill that would amend state law on antique vehicles to work around the statute declaring a vehicle or trailer with a “destroyed, removed, altered or defaced” VIN must be seized as contraband and reduced to scrap metal.
Overhaul of the law would create an exemption for people who removed and promptly reinstalled a VIN or manufacturer’s serial number on a vehicle at least 35 years old as long as that work was associated with repairs or restorations. In addition, House Bill 2594 would carve out an exception for antique vehicle owners who didn’t know or had no reason to know the antique vehicle was stolen.
Rep. Leo Delperdang, R-Wichita, said old vehicles frequently required repairs to areas housing VIN plates that could result in making it appear as if something was amiss. In this case, Martinez wasn’t under investigation for criminal conduct nor would KHP allow the vehicle to be sent back to the seller in Indiana.
“I don’t blame the Kansas Highway Patrol with what they’re doing in this case,” Delperdang told his House colleagues. “They’re doing their job. I blame the rule makers. That’s us in this room. We have the ability to do something for the better moving forward.”
He said the Kansas law caused intense anxiety among antique vehicle clubs and at automobile restoration shops where parts of multiple vehicles were used to put together a complete vehicle.
Col. Herman Jones, superintendent of the Kansas Highway Patrol, objected to the bill. He said existing KHP procedure allowed a person who wanted to remove a VIN plate to cooperate with troopers to document the removal and reinstallation to avoid the threat of seizure in Kansas.
He recommended that if the House bill advanced that a provision be added mandating vehicles to be inspected by KHP before removal of a VIN plate.
“This would allow us to document the vehicle’s identity and the removal process, thus protecting innocent citizens of Kansas from fraud, while still holding those accountable who traffic in stolen vehicles,” he said.
Sam MacRoberts, litigation director of the Kansas Justice Institute, said the current seizure process relied upon by KHP violated the state and federal constitutions because it enabled government to take an innocent person’s property without due process. He said the statute guiding KHP was too vague to be properly enforced.
“Innocence matters,” MacRoberts said in a brief submitted to the Johnson County District Court. “The government should not get to destroy Mr. Martinez’ car for a wrong he did not commit. That is unconstitutional.”
