Proposed bill sets eye on speeders

GLENDALE — Police and city officials on Thursday backed a proposed bill that would add another point to the driving records of motorists who are leaning a little too heavily on the gas pedal.

Motorists caught driving 26 mph or more above a posted speed limit would get two points on their records if Assembly Bill 2669 passes through the Senate, Assemblyman Paul Krekorian said at a news conference at the Glendale Police Station.

Under current California law, motorists caught speeding are penalized a point on their driving records.

Krekorian has named the proposed bill “Elizabeth’s Law” after Elizabeth Sandoval, who was killed July 10, 2007, after being hit by a vehicle as she crossed South Glendale Avenue just south of East Windsor Road.

The bill is “an effective tool to stopping this kind of recklessness,” Krekorian said.

Also in AB 2669, a motorist who is cited twice for driving 26 mph or more above a posted speed limit would immediately have their license revoked. Drivers are currently allotted four violation points per year before their license is taken away.

“Two offenses is enough,” said Krekorian, who introduced the bill in the state Assembly.

The bill has passed the Assembly, but is waiting for approval from the Senate Appropriations Committee to make it law.

Speeding issues have concerned Krekorian for many years, specifically after a fatal traffic collision in his mother’s Van Nuys neighborhood, he said.

In that collision, two cars were street racing, and one of the cars spun out of control. A man exiting his parked vehicle was struck and killed, Krekorian said.

“This is something that has frustrated me for a long time,” said Krekorian, who represents cities including Glendale.

Motorists who speed on city streets disregard the value of a human’s life, he said.

“These reckless, careless drivers don’t seem to care if they get a ticket, but we hope they care if we take their license away,” Krekorian said.

The city of Glendale supports the proposed bill, City Councilman Ara Najarian said. The law would help police in speed enforcement, Glendale Police Chief Randy Adams said.

The collision that killed Sandoval was a classic example of a hit-and-run, Adams said.

The man who struck Sandoval, Ara Grigoryan, was captured two weeks after the incident in Mexico City. Grigoryan is being held on a hit-and-run murder charge.