Maverick limousine operator takes hit in court

A independent limousine company owner who was fined $5,000 and had his vehicle seized for transporting two people from a restaurant to a hotel a few blocks away has lost a legal fight to have the penalty overturned.

But the challenge to the constitutionality of laws regulating Nevada limousines is still alive and William Clutter may still have a chance to retrieve his luxury vehicle from an impound yard.

That is where it has been for more than a year since undercover agents of the state's Transportation Services Authority seized it after being given a ride from one location within the state to another. Clutter did not have a TSA certificate to operate within Nevada, although he could engage in interstate activities authorized by federal law.

Clutter's attorney, James S. Kent, argued Wednesday that the TSA convicted Clutter on generalities and assumptions and did not prove he actually engaged in "commerce" when he gave a ride to the two agents.

Kent suggested at the hearing that payment, if any, was arranged through a restaurant valet and not Clutter, who expected nothing except perhaps a tip.

"There is no proof he advertised or solicited jobs," Kent told District Judge Mark Gibbons. "He was solicited by the passengers. Clutter's vehicle had a 'not for hire' tag."

TSA attorney Lisa Freedman countered that the agents simply told the valet, "We want a limousine" and the valet waved to Clutter, who was waiting in the parking lot.

While Kent had argued that the expectation of a tip isn't commerce, Freedman noted that state law does not require an exchange of money but only the transportation of an individual by a carrier without a TSA certificate.

In the end, Gibbons supported the TSA conclusion that Clutter was operating illegally.

Gibbons upheld the $5,000 fine levied by the TSA and the seizure, but said the vehicle should not be sold at auction to satisfy the fine and storage fees until after a trial later this year on the larger challenge to the constitutionality of the limousine certification laws.

In that fight, Clutter is being supported by the Washington-based Institute for Justice, a libertarian public interest law group championing property rights and free-enterprise issues.

The Transportation Services Authority has been the target of limousine operators who claim it is a bureaucratic bully that turns well-meaning entrepreneurs into criminals.

The Independent Limousine Owners/Operators Association is involved in several court actions in a bid to allow drivers to operate with less regulation.

The ILOA, which represents 63 members who own 100 limousines, contends the state agency is protecting existing limousine companies and discouraging competition.

But TSA Chairman John Mendoza has said the mission of the agency is to clear up some of the problems brought upon by the so-called "gypsy limousine" operators.

Illegal operators have used their vehicles to transport unsuspecting customers without proper training, maintenance checks and insurance, Mendoza said after the challenges first surfaced.

ILOA claims that regulation by the TSA precludes the issuing of certificates to new operators without the consent of currently licensed companies, effectively shutting the so-called gypsies out of the market.

archive