MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - Tow truck operators say the Memphis City Council is putting them in harm's way. But the councilman who worked on the city's controversial new law says tow truck operators just need to use some common sense.
Heather Guess, with Superior Automotive & Towing, says it is hard to think when you're getting hit in the face. She should know. She was attacked Monday, November 7th, 2011, as she tried to tow a truck at a local apartment complex.
"The first time I thought this is just a warning," she tells abc24.com, "but by the third time he hit me, I was scared he wasn't going to stop."
Guess says what troubles her most about the city's new towing law is a requirement that Memphis Police clear a vehicle before they can tow it. Guess says that process can take up to two hours.
Guess says she wants the city to give operators 15 minutes to move a vehicle to a safe place before they call it in to MPD.
"For them to say it is a matter of life and death, I disagree," says Harold Collins, the City Council member who worked on the new law.
"When you're getting close to the target, you're going to get a whole lot of fire," he says, "so we're getting a whole lot of fire."
Tow truck operators are not giving up. They'll be back at Memphis City Hall next Tuesday, trying to urge city council members to amend the new law.
