Can a Parked Vehicle be Impounded Without Notice

Please direct me to the LA municipal code or CA vehicle code that states a notice must be given to a vehicle owner 24 hours prior to any agency impounding a vehicle for parking over 72 hours in one spot on a street or highway.

You can look for yourself -- here and here. Alas, I suspect that your search will be fruitless.

There are several laws involved with allowing the towing after 72 hours. None of them seem to say anything about requiring the owner be notified.

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Quoting Venice VanLord

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Please direct me to the LA municipal code or CA vehicle code that states a notice must be given to a vehicle owner 24 hours prior to any agency impounding a vehicle for parking over 72 hours in one spot on a street or highway.

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And were there signs posted stating that violators were subject to being towed?

Signs are not generally required for impounds related to Likewise, 72 or 120 hour parking violations, provided that local muni codes do not require them. As a note, no CA jurisdiction I am aware of requires signs for time-related impounds ... that would be cost prohibitive as they would have to be posted everywhere in town.

That being said, while there is likely no local code requiring owner notification prior to a tow, there is likewise unlikely to be any authority to tow a vehicle solely for parking citations (less than 5, anyway). I can't find any LA Muni Code section that authorizes a tow solely for parking violations, either.

VeniceVanLord, did you have a car towed solely for a timed parking issue?

This site cites the law that doesn't specifically say anything about towing but it does explain that when a car is reported they can tow it after 72 hours.
https://prodpci.etimspayments.com/pb.../abandona.html

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Quoting PayrolGuy

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This site cites the law that doesn't specifically say anything about towing but it does explain that when a car is reported they can tow it after 72 hours.
https://prodpci.etimspayments.com/pb.../abandona.html

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Though, I cannot seem to locate any specific authority to do so in the Vehicle Code or the Muni Code. I suspect they must have some other cause to actually make the impound. The courts threw out tows that did not meet a two tier test some years ago: One, there must be a statute authorizing the tow under the circumstances, and, two, there must be an articulated community caretaking provision to justify the impound. Whether just being parked over 72 hours would be so justified, I cannot say. I do know that where I have worked, I would not have wanted to make that argument absent some other factors being present (such as the vehicle being parked in such a way that it was a hazard, etc.).

I'm still curious whether the OP will ever return to say what DID happen, or if they are simply offering up a "what if ... "scenario (which I have often told my kids I hate).

Per that link...

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The Traffic Officer must first inspect and observe the vehicle over a 72-hour period to determine that the vehicle has not been moved. After at least 72 hours have elapsed from the time of inspection and observation, the vehicle may be impounded.

Traffic Officers will immediately tow any vehicle that lacks an engine, wheels, or some other part necessary for safely driving the vehicle.

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That certainly sounds like they will tow a reported vehicle after 72 hours without something else. The fact that they will tow it immediately if it lacks something needed to safely drive it supports that theory.

Taking the OPs post literally it sounds as if he had his car towed and wants to find a law that says they can't tow it without first notifying him. There is no such law.

It wouldn't be the first time that a statement on a website exaggerates things or provides for the extreme or unlikely examples even if the language does not quite match the reality of the law. I like those claims better when they cite legal authorities in addition to the verbal bravado.

Again, they have to have a legal authority to conduct the tow and I see none in the municipal code. It might be buried somewhere.

CVC 22651(k) authorizes such a tow after 72 hours ONLY if the local municipality has an ordinance authorizing it. I assume there is such an ordinance somewhere in the muni codes, I just can't find it. Then there is the community caretaking element that should be present ... though, given that the courts seem to have some conflicting opinions on it, LA may decide to ignore that leg for the moment.

But, in either event, absent a truly bizarre and unrealistic local ordinance requirement that a vehicle owner MUST be notified PRIOR to a to impound, no such notice is necessary.

Don't the police put a red sticker on the car when first observed or reported and then tow if the car is still there with the red sticker 72 hours later?

They do that to mark it for other officers and themselves. I don't see anything requiring that it be put on there.

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Quoting adjusterjack

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Don't the police put a red sticker on the car when first observed or reported and then tow if the car is still there with the red sticker 72 hours later?

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If the vehicle is eligible to be towed, sure. These are typically placed as warnings or on vehicles that appear to be abandoned or junk. But, again, there has to be a code section (local or state) to authorize the tow. The police or local parking authority cannot simply tow a vehicle without legal justification.

Policies and practices (and color of such notices) vary by agency.