2 Made up Parking Tickets in Chicago

[CPA]

Also, contact your local paper and news stations. They may have one of those reporters who goes out and "fights for justice" for the little guys. Explain, it's not so much the money as that it looks like the city is using sporting events as a cash cow.

 

[zinfamous]

Originally posted by: Evadman
So I sent to see the Blackhawks game tonight. First, that game sucked. The blackhawks played like a bunch of girls. 14 year old girls. With broken legs.

you went to a Blackhawks game, what did you expect? hell, I'm impressed anyone remembers that there is a hockey team here

as for the tickets, welcome to Chicago! Call me back and bitch when the city impounds your car and charges you $1200 AFTER they bust out your window while trying to steal your stereo.
....

 

[zinfamous]

Originally posted by: ktehmok

Originally posted by: Evadman
So I sent to see the Blackhawks game tonight. First, that game sucked. The blackhawks played like a bunch of girls. 14 year old girls. With broken legs.

Anywho, I go back out to my truck, which was parked almost directly in front of Malcom X College. I made triple sure that I was not parked illegally, there were no signs, and a bunch of other cars were parked on the same side of the street.

When I come back to my truck, I have 2 parking tickets stuck to the window. One for having expired plates, and one for not having front plates. Both tickets are $50 a piece.

What ticks me off is that I have never had a ticket that was not a speeding ticket. No wait, that's not what ticked me off. What ticked me off is that a cop (or meter maid, whatever) had nothing better to do than write me 2 tickets. Actually, that's not what ticked me off. What ticked me off what that I have a front plate, and my plates are not expired.

I don't understand what the cop/meter made was looking at. Some other random car, but he wrote my plate on the ticket on accident, then some other cop came and stuck it on my car so the 2nd cop didn't see that the 1st had made a mistake? Seriously, I am at a loss as to WTF someone was thinking.

On top of that, to fight it I probably have to drive back downtown (a 1.5 hr trip) which means I would have to take a day off work and lose > $100 to prove that the cop is incorrect. How the hell do you prove that you had front plates on anyway besides my word? Hell, the cop/meter maid must have been illiterate or something to mistake an expiration date of 11/07 with 11/08. And be color blind and not see the color difference between orange and white so perhaps he thought the metal plate bolted to the front of my truck with the embossed letters on it ws some advent garde art or something instead of a plate.

<cliff notes>
I got 2 tickets, one for having expired plates, one for not having a front plate.
I have a front plate, and the plates do not expire until 11/08.
</cliff notes>

Your registration will show that your plates are not expired. This will show the lack of observation by the officer issuing the ticket. Bring that up first. Second, the officer will have to prove that you had no front plate. Ask for proof. There will be none. Request that the ticket be dismissed based on the lack of evidence. After all, the officer couldn't even discern that your tags were legit....

They're relying on you not fighting it. They know 90% of the people at downtown events live a good commute away, and would rather pay the bullshit fine than go downtown to dispute it. It is easy money.

Fore go the $100+ that you will lose that day at work & fight it. Then you will get a nice gold sticker for your man card.

bingo. bitch at them enough and they tend to waver. parking tickets in this city aren't written for municipal reasons (busy streets, paying for civil services). they're written to make money--and none of it goes back to the city.

Mayor Daley is scum (as well as the generations of mafioso meatheads that keep he and his ilk in power).

 

[OutHouse]

Originally posted by: FallenHero
To prove your reg is current, go to your local DMV and ask to see your license plate registration. It should have the renewal date on there somewhere...

As for the front plate...dunno what to tell ya.

umm doesnt the reg you keep in your glove box have that on it? i just checked mine (colorado) and it has what month it expires in its own little box.

 

[K1052]

Originally posted by: zinfamous

Originally posted by: Evadman
So I sent to see the Blackhawks game tonight. First, that game sucked. The blackhawks played like a bunch of girls. 14 year old girls. With broken legs.

you went to a Blackhawks game, what did you expect? hell, I'm impressed anyone remembers that there is a hockey team here

as for the tickets, welcome to Chicago! Call me back and bitch when the city impounds your car and charges you $1200 AFTER they bust out your window while trying to steal your stereo.
....

In all fairness it looked abandoned :laugh:

 

[OutHouse]

Originally posted by: Parasitic
I'm surprised that some particular individual has not come in and said "you broke the law so pay the fine" like in every ticket thread...

anyways good luck fighting that ticket. We really get taken too much advantage of as citizens.

if it was speeding yes i would have been one of those. but i HATE meter maids and their gestapo methods of earning money for a city.

 

[Carom]

In Chicago, I've contested expired plates tickets twice (in writing) and both times they were cancelled. The date and receipt numbers emailed to me from the online renewal thingie served as a proof.

 

[Steve]

Originally posted by: BurnItDwn

Originally posted by: FallenHero
To prove your reg is current, go to your local DMV and ask to see your license plate registration. It should have the renewal date on there somewhere...

As for the front plate...dunno what to tell ya.

In Illinois, going to the local DMV is an all day affair. Then he would have to take ANOTHER day off from work!

I took today off work, and I went to the DMV to get my license renewed. Once I had the new card in hand, I noticed that it still had my old weight on it from years ago, and I realized they'd never asked me if it had changed. So I told this to the picture taker, and she directed me to the floor supervisor.

I went to him and explained what happened, he gave me a new form and told me to have the cashier validate it (no fee). I did so, then went to the next desk in the process. Gave her the form and old card, and she sent me along to the picture taker. I told her what was going and she had me wait.

When she printed my new license with my current weight, it had my old picture on it. This was distressing as back then I had shoulder-length blond hair and was clean shaven. Today I have short brown hair and a goatee. She couldn't figure out how that happened, so she sent me to the supervisor again.

He was stumped as to how this could have happened, although he did say the printers are two days old, so I'm guessing the software is new and the employees aren't experienced on it yet. Anyway he walked me to the front of every line and got me taken care of quickly this time.

Don't get me started on my title, which I still haven't seen despite having this car almost two years. I think I'll have to go to Springfield myself and get it sometime.

 

[ConstipatedVigilante]

Originally posted by: Ballatician
parking sucks everywhere these days

camera phone ftw?

I bet they would say the camera phone pictures aren't clear enough. I long for the future when we have digital camera-quality phones. But I should just keep dreaming.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Shouldn't they have the ability to look up your plates and see that they aren't expired and that you possess both a front and rear? I don't even know why they would write you a citation if they can clearly see it. They're basically proving to their employer that they aren't competent.

 

[Nitemare]

A corrupt Chicago cop??? surely you jest

You aren't the only one

http://www.overlawyered.com/20...o_parking_tickets.html

http://www.city-data.com/forum...t-parking-tickets.html

http://www.yelp.com/topic/chic...rking-ticket-need-help

Unfortunately, you are guilty until proven guilty when it comes to speeding/parking tickets. The city needs your money to pay it's employees.

 

[zinfamous]

Originally posted by: K1052

Originally posted by: zinfamous

Originally posted by: Evadman
So I sent to see the Blackhawks game tonight. First, that game sucked. The blackhawks played like a bunch of girls. 14 year old girls. With broken legs.

you went to a Blackhawks game, what did you expect? hell, I'm impressed anyone remembers that there is a hockey team here

as for the tickets, welcome to Chicago! Call me back and bitch when the city impounds your car and charges you $1200 AFTER they bust out your window while trying to steal your stereo.
....

In all fairness it looked abandoned :laugh:

hey, if the city employees had broken in while it was on the street that'd be one thing--but the dumb-shits smashed my window while it was on city property.

Don't you steal my thunder!

 

[zinfamous]

Originally posted by: Carom
In Chicago, I've contested expired plates tickets twice (in writing) and both times they were cancelled. The date and receipt numbers emailed to me from the online renewal thingie served as a proof.

uh, here's your answer, btw. just mail in the complaint (there's a little checkbox on your ticket for mailing the complaint)

 

[Evadman]

Horray! I'm guilty, and got a notice stating that I owe for both tickets today. Apparently, in Chicago, pictures of the front and rear plate installed on the truck, with sticker, copy of the registration renewal, and a signed declaration stating that I had non-expired plates are not enough in the great city of Chicago.

I can of course, go to one of 4 locations in the City and contest it in person, as long as I do it within the next 35 days. I am so suing the city, as soon as I figure out how. What a crock of sh!t.

 

[jpeyton]

This doesn't surprise me at all.

Sorry to hear about the guilty verdict. Cities don't want to hear any quibbles about their revenue generation schemes.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Wow what a load of crap. Sucks that you're gonna have to waste a day to contest it.

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: CPA
Also, contact your local paper and news stations. They may have one of those reporters who goes out and "fights for justice" for the little guys. Explain, it's not so much the money as that it looks like the city is using sporting events as a cash cow.

This is Chicago we're talking about. It's been run by crooks for the last 50 years.

 

[Juno]

wow that blows. beat their asses.

 

[nakedfrog]

It's been a while since they had a Great Fire, yes?

 

[Evadman]

Horray! I am no longer guilty. That took fricking forever.

 

[jlee]

Originally posted by: Evadman
Horray! I am no longer guilty. That took fricking forever.

Congrats!

Next time, call the PD and have somebody swing by..then give them the 'WTF?' expression as you point to your valid front plate.

 

[KK]

Originally posted by: Evadman
Horray! I am no longer guilty. That took fricking forever.

What happened, the meter maid/cop got run over like they deserve, and couldn't testify?

 

[Pepsei]

Originally posted by: Evadman
Horray! I am no longer guilty. That took fricking forever.

so what happened between guilty and not guilty?

 

[Evadman]

Originally posted by: KK

Originally posted by: Evadman
Horray! I am no longer guilty. That took fricking forever.

What happened, the meter maid/cop got run over like they deserve, and couldn't testify?

I never went to court, and never paid the ticket. (generally exactly the wrong move) I figured that the worst they could do was issue a bench warrant, then I would go apeshit on a real judge. However, I got a letter saying that my tickets were both cancelled because I had submitted evidence that proved I was not in violation.

I am not sure, but my guess is that the Pope, with his cool Pope hat, signed off on me being correct.

 

[GenHoth]

sweet, parking in chicago is so inconvenient