[25psi_Elise_Killer]

I got my parking ticket declared "Invalid". Here's how i did it:

HOW TO: FIGHT A PARKING TICKET WHEN NO PARKING SIGN IS NOT POSTED IN A "CONSPICUOUS PLACE"

Applies to City of Los Angeles, but could apply to other cities/agencies:

City of Los Angeles: Parking Violations Bureau

Service: Contesting a Ticket
Description: Contesting a ticket is a three-step process
Administrative Review
Administrative Hearing
Appeal

Telephone: Please call the number below to request an Administrative Review.

or
Mail: Please send a letter to the address below to request an Administrative Review. Please state the grounds upon which you are contesting the ticket. Write the citation number on the letter or refrence the received citation.
You MUST contest your citation within 21 days of the date the ticket was issued, or 14 days from the date on the first overdue notice.

Phone (866)561-9742
TTY: (213)623-7046
Mail Correspondence: City of Los Angeles
P.O. Box 30247
Los Angeles, CA. 90030-0968



My Administrative Review i wrote thru the mail:



August 1, 2008
Attachment: 1
City of Los Angeles-Parking Violations Bureau Initial Review Request

For defendant:
Skiracer
1111 Crenshaw Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA
Citation# 123456789

To Whom It May Concern:

I am contesting the citation number listed above which I received on 8/1/2008 at 8:03AM which my car was parked at or near “X2405 Crenshaw Blvd.” according to the citation.

Attached photograph A shows a sign 30-40 feet East of my parking location stating “No Parking 8 to 12 Noon Thursdays Only Street Sweeping”, but the sign is obscured by tree branches and leaves and was not in a “conspicuous” location as CVC 22507.6 states below and can only be read when you move the tree branches and leaves.

CVC 22507.6 states, “Local authorities may, by ordinance or resolution, prohibit or restrict the parking or standing of vehicles on designated streets or highways, or portions thereof, for the purpose of street sweeping…No such ordinance or resolution shall be effective until the street or highway, or portion thereof, has been sign-posted in accordance with the uniform standards and specifications of the Department of
Transportation, or local authorities have caused to be posted in a CONSPICUOUS place at each entrance to the street a notice not less than 17 inches by 22 inches in size, with lettering not less than one inch in height, setting forth the day or days and hours parking
is prohibited.”

Attached photograph B shows a close up shot of the No Parking sign covered by tree branches and leaves and is clearly not in a conspicuous location.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word “conspicuous” as:
1 : obvious to the eye or mind <conspicuous changes>
2 : attracting attention : striking <a conspicuous success>
3 : marked by a noticeable violation of good taste
Synonyms: see Noticeable
conspicuous - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

I am requesting my ticket be dismissed on the grounds that the No Parking Sign was not in a conspicuous/obvious location per CVC 22507.6 and not clearly visible from the street due to tree branches and leaves obscuring the visibility of the sign.

Regards,





Skiracer

And, here's the end result about 3 months later:

 

[Bavarian Motorist]

Good job. It's not about the money. It's the principle of them trying to screw you out of it

 

[25psi_Elise_Killer]

Actually, the parking ticket was $50, so it was kinda about the money -eek-

 

[lc_09]

good work. :up:

i got a ticket similar to this in Pasadena many years ago. i don't know why i didn't think to fight it.

the sign on that occasion was even more obscured, than the one in your picture.

 

[charliex]

sweet.

 

[JoshS]

Good work. That sign is definately a noticeable violation of good taste. I beat one once where the sign had been removed and thrown in the bushes. The citing officer went out and said I tore it out of the ground and threw it behind the bushes. I told the judge, if I went to that much trouble I would have hidden it much better. I won.

 

[markjp]

4 years later, I just stumbled onto this. I praise you for posting this and uploading the pictures. That is good information,
only if you are cited near an obscured sign. I'd be surprised if people didn't know how to fight for their rights and prepare a defense with photos. A case like this is clearly in the drivers favor.

The problem is you titled this "How to fight parking ticket in Los Angeles." and it ONLY applies to your incident, a rare case where you were wrongly ticketed. It doesn't help others "fight a ticket in Los Angeles" because it doesn't apply to all tickets. It's misleading.

This doesn’t help other people who get parking tickets unfairly. Such as waiting to park your car on the street when a traffic officer pulls up behind you and issues you a ticket. You can't that, even with witnesses and photo's. However, I have contested and won 2 traffic citations that way. Seems easier to beat a Traffic citation than a Parking one.

A few years ago I went to Midas auto shop on Veteran avenue for an oil change. That street is Permit Only. I parked 2 blocks away, walked to the shop, guy told me drive up, he will move a car so I can pull in. I pulled in front of the shop, the guy took too long. A car pulled behind me I couldn't see well in the mirror. An officer got out. I got out & said "Sorry I'm waiting to pull in to the shop here. Can I leave and come back?" He nodded & got back in his car. I drove around the block & went back, he was gone. A month later I get a ticker for $65, sixty five dollars!! Reason: "blocking traffic, stopped in street." I took pic's, got the name & card of the shop worker, prepared a case, paid $6.00 for Registered mail & Confirmation. 2 months later I got a letter from the court upholding the citation and saying "this doesn't prove you weren't stopped or blocking traffic." I lose $71. That hurt. A whole day's pay.

Or, if you park in a 2 hour zone & get back to your car 1 minute after 2 hours, right as a traffic officer pulls up and you ask "can I leave" or "I was just leaving." Even if they nod or say "yes" you may still get a ticket in the mail. It happened to me in Pasadena. Officer got back in his car and didn't give me the ticket, yet they mailed me one. When I explained in a letter with my fine, they wrote back "you were parked past 2 hours." So you can't fight all parking tickets in L.A.

 

[oldmansan]

Sorry this is 4 years later, I just stumbled onto this. I praise you for posting this and uploading the pictures. That is great information, although I'd be surprised if people didn't know how to fight for their rights and prepare a defense (with photos) if they are cited near an obscured sign. If people strongly feel that a citation was issued in error or unclear conditions like this, they should prepare a case, take photo's, talk to witnesses or neighbors. A case like this is clearly in the drivers favor,

The problem is you titled this "How to fight parking ticket in Los Angeles." and this thread ONLY applies to your incident, a rare case where you were wrongly ticketed. You're not helping others "fight a ticket in Los Angeles" because it doesn't apply to all tickets. It's misleading.

This doesn’t help the hundreds of other people who get parking tickets unfairly. Such as waiting to park your car on the street when a traffic officer pulls up behind you and issues you a ticket (you couldn't see it was a traffic vehicle in your mirror.) You can't fight a ticket like that, even with witnesses and photo's of the scene. I know because I tried. However, I have contested and won 2 traffic citations that way.

A few years ago I went to Midas auto shop on Veteran avenue for an oil change. That street is Permit Only, so I parked 2 blocks away, walked to the shop, the guy told me drive up, he will move a car so I can pull in. I pulled in front of the shop, the guy took too long, a car pulled up behind me I couldn't see well in the mirror. Someone get out with a pad of paper. I got out & told him "Sorry I'm waiting to pull in to the shop here. Can I leave and come back?" He nodded his head & got back in his car. A month later I get a ticker for $65, sixty five dollars!! Reason: for "blocking traffic, stopped in street." I took pic's, got the name & card of the shop worker, prepared a case, paid $6.00 for Registered mail & Confirmation. 2 months later I got a letter from the court upholding the citation and saying "this doesn't prove you weren't stopped or blocking traffic." I lose $71. That hurt. That was a whole day's pay.

Or, if you park in a 1 or 2 hour sign & you arrive back at your car at the end of the time period right as a traffic officer pulls up and you ask "can I leave" or "I was just leaving." Even if they nod or say "yes" you may still get a ticket in the mail & you have no defense. "He said I could leave" only admits you were parked there.

Seriously, this is your first post? Strange is an understatement.

San