Fighting Parking Tickets (If You Are in the Right)
Have you ever received a parking ticket that you felt was unwarranted and you do not want to pay the fine? Well with a little research, some photographs and a nicely typeset report, you have a chance to get out of it, but only if you are in the right.
My story begins a couple of years ago. One day I parked in an the alley of a parking lot – a place I have parked many times without consequence – outside Vaughn and Dusty’s place. A few hours later when I left, I had a ticket that stated I was in violation of Section 3.2 of Bylaw 2324, which begins with “No person shall park a motor vehicle in an alley unless he [sic] is actively engaged in:” followed by the summary “(3.2) The loading or unloading of goods or passengers from a vehicle for no longer than 5 minutes as long as the vehicle does not obstruct traffic.”
The thing about the alley I parked in does not 100% conform to the dictionary definitions of an alley, one of which is: “A narrow back street.” It was not narrow enough that my parking was obstructing traffic, as it still allowed people to back in and out of the parking lot spaces and still could allow two-way traffic with ease. Furthermore, there was not a “No Parking” sign to be seen, allowing me to refer to the fact that most urbanites do not have all city bylaws memorized, so there was no way to know that parking was not allowed in that area.
In my report to the Police, I stated the dictionary definition, the lack of a No Parking sign, and referred to Section 3.2 of Bylaw 2324, arguing that I was not in the wrong to park there and the ticket should be revoked. I provided further evidence in my report with photographs. The ticket was nullified and the fee was reversed.
I suppose a girl could also argue against the same bylaw in that it states “No person shall park a motor vehicle in an alley unless he is actively engaged in:”, since she is not a he…
My report: http://www.medicinehatmedia.com/sean_potts_parking_ticket_2007.pdf
Medicine Hat Bylaw 2424: http://www.medicinehat.ca/City%20Government/Bylaws/bylaws/bylaw2434.pdf
Medicine Hat Bylaw List: http://www.medicinehat.ca/City%20Government/Bylaws/bylaws.asp
November 9th, 2009 at 8:03 AM
Gary says:
I’m glad you got your ticket revoked. People can also get speeding fine reduced or extra time to pay just by asking the crown prosecuter.