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.
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.
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.
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
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...
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.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.
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.