I fought a street sweeping ticket in another city which does NOT, in my opinion, provide adequate signage. ONE SIGN
at the entrance to the track which I didn't bother to read because it's four blocks up and two blocks over from where I was
parked states" NO PARKING All Streets in This Tract from (day of week and time) due to Street Sweeping. Are any
readers familiar with California Vehicle Code sections 22507 and 21351, interpretation of? I'm "fighting"
on the PRINCIPLE, not the $30.
I posted to LCCN (Los Cerritos Community News) and also to
the Publisher's page. Wouldn't it be cool to see ALL of the people that prob wound up LOSING their cars and jobs
at least get their $30+ back because of a CLASS ACTION lawsuit? This is what I wrote on LCCN - why not LIKE their page?:
BELOW IS WHAT I POSTED TO TO THE NEWSPAPER THAT COVERS THIS AREA:
Street Sweeping: ONE No Parking sign per Tract or per City Entrance = A Racket! I live in Long Beach where signs are
plentiful (and much appreciated now!) about STREET SWEEPING. I visit one of the cities covered by LCCN and wind up with a
ticket outside of a house a friend (from a different country who doesn't own a car!)'s house. After searching high and low,
I find ONE SIGN at the front of the tract - two blocks up and 5 blocks over. QUESTIONS: a) How is this legal? b) Why is it
acceptable to its residents? An inquiring City Gal wants to know!
--> SIDE NOTE:
I fought the beast once and lost. Going for round two. I have a friend who said she's fine speaking for me at a City
Council Meeting. For now, let me save y'all some money with APPS. (Smart Phone Needed): "Street Sweeping Alarm",
"Move Your Car", "Park My Car", "Park Smart (San Francisco - in case you ever visit;), "Sweep:
BOS" (Boston)
http://thesweeperinc.com/sweep.html , and "Street Cleaner" (San Diego). I am the person that fought a ticket across from Town Center YEARS AGO
and lost* but wound up getting that 40MPH Speed Limit Sign installed near Denny's thanks to a nice Lakewood Road Engineer
named George Enball. (*lost: Cop named Wolf or Wolford told the judge, "There's been a sign posted on that strip for
over 20 years" and George said I wouldn't need the work order to back up MY claim - which I DID need. Instead of fighting
it a second time, I returned the letter written to me, deleting my name and tell-tell info and circled the 7 misspelled words
with these words handwritten across the paper, "I hope whomever typed this letter wasn't the one responsible for making
this decision" and addressed the envelope to the Supervisor.
(YEP - Decades Letter and I remember two names
from the ordeal!) <--
APPEALING MY STREET SWEEPING TICKET:
I called
the City in which I received my street sweeping ticket about the status. I was told the decision will be mailed to me. After
not receiving anything within 10 days, I STOPPED into the police station. The dispatcher named P said, "I KNOW I've
seen that challenge - I remember the writing." After looking around she said, "Oh, maybe
it got stapled to someone else's parking ticket." YEP, that's where it was. The form itself was signed
"under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that on the date below set forth the notice was deposited
in the U.S. Mail in a sealed envelope, postage fully-pre-paid."
So there it was, my form with
one word stamped on it showing my appeal was denied and due (by the next day). I paid the ticket and asked about appealing
the decision. (LIKE, why can't first time offenders get a WARNING? Turns out I had 15 days from the date they
supposedly mailed it to take it to the next level ie. taking to it a Hearing Review in a neighboring city. I called
that city and the Police Dept employee who answered the phone replied they (that city) do not review
parking tickets from the City in which I received one. I called back the issuing city and the person who found
my stapled form to someone else's parking ticket remembered me. She said I must have gotten a part-time employee who didn't
know the correct information. She verified the specific days I could go to that police station and talk to
a specific person but I told her that is one day LATER than I have to do so. (They only hear 2 days, not Mon-Fri)
The told me if there was a problem with the deadline that she'd tell them about the mailing error.
I
went to the neighboring police station and the contractor (NOT a police employee) said. "Oh, I'm not going to override
their decision." I replied, "SO WHY DO THEY BOTHER SENDING ANYONE HERE if there is NO CHANCE to win an appeal?"
He stated in the 9 years he's been doing hearings, only 3 or 4 people came in from that city." "YES", I said.
"It's set up as a deterrent. WHO is going to lose a half day of work to fight a ticket for less than $100?
This is a RACKET!"
He then tells me I have ANOTHER course of action: To go to yet ANOTHER
Orange County City and file an appeal for $25. (My street sweeping ticket was $30. Do the math!) I leave the building,
sit on the bench outside overlooking my paperwork and notice he dated the day of his decision (today) 9 days from now.
I walk back in the building and point that out to him. "It must be your birthdate. Your wife's birthdate?
Anniversary?" He then recalls there WAS one time he overturned a parking ticket fromm (my) issuing city.
I asked him the reason, which he didn't recall. "Was it your grandkid's ticket?" I asked.
He
then explained what the $25 was for: The court will summons the citation-issuing officer to the court. I'm like,
"For WHAT? I know NOW it wasn't the day to park there. He's not needed- the problem is the SIGNAGE."
He mentions the vehicle code and I replied back,"The vehicle code is not detailed as to sign placement, in this case
two blocks up and five blocks over."
I leave and after getting home, look up the phone number
on google for the North Justice Center in Fullerton. I notice they have the wrong zip code for
the Justice Center on the form he gave me. I call him after I call a 1-877 phone number I found on the web
to which a representative states he's ONLY been trained re: traffic tickets, not parking tickets and they have no phone number. He gives me a 714-449-8100 which is disconnected. The correct phone number is
1-877-872-2122 (for Traffic and Criminal, NOT for Parking tickets or direct at (657)622-5600. I called various extensions
and between 4:00-4:30 heard the same, "We are now closed. Our hours of operation are between the hours of
7:30am and 5:00 pm" (WRONG! They obviously close at 4pm!) The website is OCcourts.org
NOT occourts.orgS (no plural) as one extension announcement states!
