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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Posts
    1

    Default Ticket and Fine Even Though I Was Not Parked In Disabled Parking

    First of all I wanted to say that I just found this forum and it looks like a great place to share information and help each other out. I received a parking ticket last month saying that my car was "parked across blue lines. Partially blocking access to HNC parking." Below is the letter I sent to them which will explain what happened. My only evidence so far is my written statement because I didn't notice the ticket until I was driving away.

    This letter is to explain the parking situation I encountered on Tuesday June 13th.

    Upon parking my vehicle at 5500 Grossmont there were vehicles in both parking spaces to the left and right of the parking place I choose. The large SUV on my left side was parked to the extreme right of his parking place. This forced me to move my vehicle to the extreme right of my parking place so I could open my door wide enough for myself (I am pregnant) and to get my son out of the Driver’s passenger side door. I corrected my vehicle’s parking and although it was very close, my vehicle was within the limits. However I do understand why the officer left a ticket because it was very close. I completely understand that you all have an important job to do. But I did not block any access to the disabled parking space. There was even a different vehicle parked there when I returned, proving that I did not block the handicapped parking area.

    I honestly apologize for any inconveniences this experience has caused for you and your staff. This has truly been a very stressful event in my family’s life as well because we are a low-income military family with a new baby on the way. Before this unfortunate incident I had never received any type of ticket or reprimand for a violation.

    I have driven a handicapped van before when working with the disabled elderly and handicapped persons in a SAIL (Senior Assisted Independent Living) home. From those experiences I do understand the importance and value of access to the handicapped parking system. I appreciate your personnel for taking the time to read this letter. In the future I will be sure to leave more than enough room to the handicapped parking side so this unfortunate incident will never happen again.

    I got a response back today. "Evidence shows that your vehicle was partially parked on the blue hash marks. Which are part of the disabled parking stall. The state mandates the size of disabled parking stall to accommodate all sizes of disabled vehicles."

    I called over there and spoke to the Sergeant who said that unfortunately he was on leave last week and couldn't overturn the decision. It will have to go to the next level. I am unable to physically go to the hearing on OCT 20th because we are moving in AUG to Illinois. I am due to have the baby in NOV and the doctor does not want me to be traveling after 35 weeks pregnant.
    I feel like I'm at a major disadvantage of not being able to defend myself. One of the reasons why I love the US and served in the military was because of the court systems that are supposed to serve the people. I want to see their "evidence" myself because I feel like this ticket is unjust. The sergeant I talked to even admitted that they rarely take pictures and the "evidence" they spoke of was most likely just the ticket and SOMETIMES they will call the officer in to talk to them. So basically it seems to come down to my word against theirs.
    So my questions are
    #1. How do I put together more evidence if everything has to be done through the mail?
    #2 Is there a way I can ask for a different hearing date because of my "medical" issue of not being able to travel do to the pregnancy?
    #3 The ticket was on Wal-mart's private property. How can I find out if their handicapped stalls are correctly marked and measured?
    #4 Are there any ideas on how I can fight this? It seems like it's just one person's written word against another. I have heard that they tend to take the cop's side, but I feel like I have good standing too being prior military and a CLEAN background, I have never even got a ticket before
    #5 Is there a way I can improve my letter?
    .
    Thank you all for taking the time to read this letter. Some people might say to just pay it. But I honestly don't feel like I deserved this ticket. I can't really afford it either. I hate the fact that it's the same price as someone who blatantly parked IN the handicapped spot, which I did not.
    I reside in California

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Arkansas
    Posts
    643

    Default Re: $340 fine and I didn't even park in the disabled parking!

    Your quickest solution would be to contact the prosecutor who will be handling the case and see if you can get it worked out. You may be able to reach a mutual agreement and may be able to have it put on the docket sooner than is scheduled given your situation. I have seen cases resolved this way and this beats coming in to pay the ticket; whether you are able to resolve it in this manner may depend on the prosecutor.

    Failing this, it would appear you would have to contest it and try it before the judge at some point--you might get it continued because of your condition but ultimately it would have to be dealt with in court absent an agreement because it sounds as though the judge is going to have to make a credibility determination regarding exactly where the vehicle was parked.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Posts
    147

    Default Re: $340 fine and I didn't even park in the disabled parking!

    If you can’t work it out fight or pay.

    I heard of something similar from a co-work of mine. He was in San Francisco and on the ticket it said he was parking in a read zone (he was parked near the red line but not on it). He went to trial he had pictures of his vehicle before he moved it, his roommate as a witness and he still lost.

    He questions the citation officer and essential said how you could remember with it my car cross the red line when you wrote so many tickets. The officer essentially said the car in question was so over the red line they he/she had remember it. I believe this is a can (form answer) answer.

    I am telling you this because I believe this is how they will answer. Weather they remember or not they will not say I don’t remember where the line was in relationship to your car. They will certainly not say that your car did not cross the line.

    I think the only chance you got is to be able to successfully challenge the memory or citing officer.

    You start by getting their notes from the citation with an informal discovery (do a search in this form). In trial try to get the notes away from the officer and see if he/she could remember details of the situation. The street, the color or your car, the make, model. Est.

    And if they say you were parked was so bad that they remember. Just say how many times they had said something similar at trials. If they said they don’t know then ask them is more than once, more than 10 times, est.

    Another thing you could check if you were at the store or in a mall is if they have surveillance cameras. Maybe it will show you where you were parked.

    Another thing you could check if it is in a parking lot whether the handicap parking is legal to start with (I don’t know how to find out maybe someone here could help).

    good luck

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