Fourth District Councilmember Nithya Raman voted against an ordinance to make
unauthorized possession of a catalytic converter a criminal offense. The motion was
adopted by the city council on April 18 and is intended to provide police an additional tool
for combating the thousands of catalytic converters thefts that have occurred in the city in
the last few years.
Raman justified her vote against the measure by claiming that prosecuting offenders would
cost the city more time and money and not make the city any safer. She placed blame on
Toyota in particular, since one of the most popular targets of catalytic converter thieves is
the hybrid Prius.
Recently, federal, state and local authorities took down a nationwide catalytic converter
theft ring. Arrests occurred in several states, including California.
One measure car owners can take to help law enforcement is to get an identification
number etched on their vehicle's catalytic converter. On May 25 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00
p.m., LAPD Northeast senior lead officers are hosting a VIN etching for catalytic
converters event at Eagle Rock Plaza, located at 2700 Colorado Blvd.
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