LOS ANGELES (KNX) - Los Angeles has stopped impounding cars that have numerous unpaid tickets.
According to a memo obtained by NBC Los Angeles, Brian Hale, who serves as the chief of Parking Enforcement, wrote that the towing of five or more unpaid parking citations “will be temporarily suspended.”
The city will tow cars for other reasons, including cars that are a “traffic hazard” and are blocking fire hydrants or driveways.
It comes after U.S. District Court Judge Jesus G. Bernal denied a motion by the city of L.A. to reject a lawsuit filed by a woman who said her car was impounded for unpaid citations even though it was legally parked.
The city tried to get the lawsuit dismissed because they felt they had the right to impound the illegally parked cars. Meanwhile, the lawyer for the woman said his client couldn’t afford to pay the parking tickets because she was out of work and had medical conditions.
"There is a distinction, from a community caretaking perspective, between removal of an illegally parked car with multiple unpaid citations and a legally parked car with multiple unpaid citations," Judge Bernal wrote in his ruling. "The City fails to grasp the difference."
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