I think people that are not handicapped that park in handicapped spots should go to jail

[Horse with no Name]

I don't think a fine is substantial enough as punishment for breaking this law.

There is no GOOD reason for someone that is NOT handicapped to park in their designated space.

But...I have to say, what happened to me this morning makes me a little angry too.

I took a friend who has severe asthma to the doctor and to run a couple of errands. It is REALLY hot and the humidity is overbearing--making it difficult for my friend with asthma to function outside.
She, however, does not have a handicapped sticker.

We were really happy that there was a parking spot close to the door of the place of business that we were going. However, a car with a handicapped sticker cut in front and took the spot--forcing us to have to park at the back of the lot. There were no fewer than 10 open handicap spots so this person had plenty of close parking opportunities without taking one that might be used for someone that isn't quite as disabled as they are--yet still in need of a closer parking spot.

I know this isn't important in the scheme of things...but if we set aside parking spots...then they should be utilized.

[Freddie Stubbs]

1. I think that having their car towed would be an appropriate punishment

[trueblue2007]

11. we dont have jail space for that,

PUT CRIMINALS IN JAIL. FINE PEOPLE WHO PARK IN DISABLED SPOTS A HUGE FINE!!

my husband is disabled. there are often not enough disabled spots but it is BAD idea to throw millions of people in jail for this kind of infraction. our jails are bursting as it is.

WHAT DO WE DO? THROW THE MURDERERS OUT AND LET THEM MURDER AGAIN? You want your daughter raped because the rapist was let out of jail to put in someone who parked illegally in a disable parking spot?

[AngryAmish]

2. If 35% of the population is not in jail at any given time, then we are a failed state.

[Lucinda]

3. That would be very frustrating. Maybe the driver wasn't handicapped?

They might have been another family member and not the one the card was issued for.

I understand your frustration though.

[Ilsa]

22. Exactly. And a friend of mine had a temporary sticker

because of foot surgery. She parked in designated handicapped spot. She got out and walked reasonably well into the building wearing her special brace/boot. When she came out, someone had vandalized her car by messing with the wipers and radio antenna. Street justice gone awry. She didn't bother using handicapped parking again because apoarently, to other people, she didn't look like she deserved it.

[madinmaryland]

4. Un-recced. It just means more revenue for the prison industrial complex.

[Bunny]

5. I agree. It's the lowest of the low.

People who do that just plain suck.


PS - You could have dropped your friend off at the door, and then parked the car.

[Horse with no Name]

8. I siuggested that...but she is really in denial about how severe her condition is

which is why she won't go apply for her own sticker.:(

But when I dropped her off at her house she sounded worse than she did when I picked her up.

[Pithlet]

6. The person driving the car may not be who the sticker was intended for.

Therefore they may not have had a right to take a handicapped parking spot. I also don't agree that jail time is an appropriate punishment. Our jails are crowded as it is.

[tammywammy]

7. What if that driver was having a good day and could make the extra distance?

What if the tag was for another driver of the vehicle, not that one? Why didn't you just drop your friend off at the door while you went and parked?

[Horse with no Name]

13. It was one spot over from a handicapped spot

and the person was definitely in need of their placard.

And my friend is in denial of her "handicap" and refuses to be DROPPED off like an "invalid". But take ME out of the equation and pretend my friend was driving herself. It is simply a matter of lack of courtesy or simply not thinking beyond the situation. Of course if they were having a good day then parking a few spots back is great. But utilizing the "up close" parking that someone else might benefit from when you have reserved parking is a little inconsiderate.

I mean, if you work at an office and have designated spots for the managers and only a few for the employees...and the managers decide not to park in their own spots--but park in the very few that you are allowed to park in--wouldn't that just make you a little bit angry if it forced you to park a lot further away than you normally would have?

[pipi_k]

23. A few things...

Sometimes it's not always apparent what's handicapped parking and what isn't. Mr Pip has a handicap placard and the thinking with him is that any space closer to the door than others is handicapped parking. Some of them aren't, which really doesn't make any sense, IMO, because logically they should be, but that's the way it is. In his mind, and I agree with him...anybody who needs a handicap placard and would qualify for one but refuses to get one is a damned fool.


When you say your friend refuses to be dropped off "like an invalid", are you saying you have tried that before? And when I say "tried that", I mean have you actually driven up to the entrance and said, "Here ya go...I'll find a spot and meet you inside"?

If you have and your friend has sat there like a spoiled child, refusing to get out, then perhaps it's time to treat her like one. By that I mean sitting there and refusing to move your car unless and until she gets out. If she then refuses, drive her back home. Bye-bye!!!

And, last...your friend is making these choices on her own. Assuming she's a reasonably intelligent and sane adult, there is nothing you can do to "protect" her. Nor should you. Not if she's intent on making things harder for herself than they need to be. If she doesn't give a shit about wheezing, then that's her right as an adult.

[HopeHoops]

9. Some years ago, there was a guy in a bar bragging about having stolen a handicapped placard.

This wasn't exactly a yuppie bar mind you, more of a biker kind. The reaction was UNIVERSALLY negative and he left without finishing his drink. I think he probably would have ended up in the parking lot in need of medical attention had he stayed.

[ceile]

10. It's a $300 fine here.

Believe me- you get a ticket for parking in a handicapped spot you won't do it again.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

18. I used to love watching cops block in and ticket scofflaws ....

... in the Block Buster parking lot near my house. The people who "just ran in for a minute" would get a surprise when the cop pulled up behind.

[NeedleCast]

12. No

It is a horrible idea to put MORE people in prison at taxpayer expense for what is certainly a dick move, but a rather minor violation of the law.

[MineralMan]

14. That seems excessive. Fines are just fine.

But, let's enforce those parking laws vigorously. Right now, they're not really enforced much at all. Think of the additional revenue...

[Horse with no Name]

16. I don't think they are enforced in Texas at all. n/t

[Gidney N Cloyd]

15. 1) Too many ppl in jail already. 2) I would have dropped the friend off at the door before parking.

[Cleita]

17. Your friend actually qualifies for a handicap sticker.

Also, many people who have those stickers may not appear to be handicapped but they have a variety of chronic conditions that warrant it. However, there are those who park in them, who don't, and I understand your frustration. Next time, why don't you leave her at the door of the store, while you go look for a parking space? That way she doesn't have to walk across the parking lot. I used to have to do this with my husband until we were able to get a sticker for him.

[HockeyMom]

26. Temporary Handicapped Stickers

My husband has had hip replacement surgery, and actually today, is having his second one. His doctor gave him temporary (6 months) stickers. He has limped, and walked with a cane, before and after the surgery. In addition, it's very difficult for him to get in and out of the car when parked in a normal space. Besides the handicapped spots are closer, they are also wider and he has more room to maneuver in and a out of the car.

Good advice. I have dropped him off and gone looking for a spot, and driven back afterward until he got his sticker.

[Horse with no Name]

37. I know. And maybe when she is not in denial she will get one.

This severe asthma was sudden onset and took a very active woman to a very sick one.

She thinks she will get better...even though the doctors tell her that the damage to her lungs is too severe.

[CrispyQ]

19. I think they should have to maneuver in a wheel chair for a week.

I had a serious illness in my 20s & was in a wheelchair for 6 months. Just getting around in your own house is a challenge.

[Highwater Filters]

20. Jail time too extreme. Humiliation a better punishment.

Yeah, consider the cost to taxpayers if we jailed all the sleazes who take the disabled parking spaces?

funny, I was griping about this issue on another forum just yesterday. I saw a couple park in a prime spot. They had a disabled parking tag. But the guy seemed fit and abled bodied and the woman was borderline obese. She may qualify for obese. She didn't appear to be handicapped. She walked just fine.

I proposed that doctors should issue tags for grossly overweight people that would restrict their parking too close to the store. They should have a designated area at the far end of the lot. Don't mean to offend fat people but c'mon. Save those spots for people who need them!

Maybe people who park there unjustifiably should have to sport a bumper sticker that exposes their crime. :0

[geardaddy]

21. So, the person who parked in the handicapped spot

was handicapped?

:shrug:

[WinkyDink]

24. Owners of privatized prisons agree with you.

[Horse with no Name]

25. I seriously thought people here knew the difference between a jail and prison

a jail for a minor offense is usually a matter of being booked in, charged, booked out--hefty fines and hefty inconvenience...but nothing more except a lesson learned and the county makes some extra money.

Apparently I was wrong...but here you go. Jail is NOT prison.

[delunapark]

28. Un Rec how do you know they were not hancapped?

n/t

[Horse with no Name]

29. I never said they weren't

in fact...if you are able to read and comprehend...I did state that they WERE in need of their placard.

[Pithlet]

32. Jail and prison are terms that are used interchangeably so regularly

That while you may be technically correct, when you say people should go to jail for x, people will think you mean they should be sentenced as punishment. People generally don't converse in technical terms conversationally, so they aren't used to taking things so technically. Even though I know that there's a technical difference, I even thought you meant there should be a prison sentence.

[Horse with no Name]

35. Understood. I want someone inconvenienced...not incarcerated. n/t

[WinkyDink]

43. I do know the difference. What makes you think I knew YOU knew? ;-)

Seriously, we DO, even if incorrectly, use the terms interchangeably.

[Dappleganger]

27. So you're upset that someone w/a handi sticker cut in front of you and took a regular spot?

That really makes little sense.

I used to assist an elderly woman for a couple of years twice a week, and she had a handi-tag she would bring with us as it was difficult for her to walk (she had to use a walker after a significant hip injury). It was quite frustrating driving around and around to find a space, they were quite often used up. Often she'd have to wait on the walkway while I got the car, but that made me nervous w/her standing there alone. It's not something you really notice until you need the spot for real. And we watched driver after driver of cars which were sporting handi-tags jumping out of their cars/trucks and running into stores. The only thing we could guess is they snagged it from a relative and then began to feel awfully special...

[Horse with no Name]

33. I didn't count, but it was early and there were at least 10 open handicap spots

One being right next to where they parked.

And yes..I've seen the borrowing of the placard. It makes me sick.

I suppose my frustration is that my friend refuses to acknowledge her limitations (she is in her 50's and has always been active-) and now she is relatively disabled and fighting it because it is all new to her--this was a sudden onset thing. I had to watch her struggle to hike up the parking lot and back, wheezing and breathless because of the oppressive heat...when if that ONE person had just parked in a spot that was designated just for them...my friend wouldn't have had to suffer and everyone's needs would have been met.

[Dappleganger]

45. What if the person with the handi-tag wasn't really handicapped?

Suppose they had just borrowed the car from the handicapped relative? Honestly, I don't think you have an honest quibble other than being 'cut off', which happens in my city constantly but there's nothing you can do but move on. Maybe the heat is just making it seem worse.

Asthma is horrible (I have as well as 3 out of our 4 kids). You should have seen us when the fires were burning and smoke was everywhere--couldn't go outside.

[Horse with no Name]

46. They were definitely in need of their placard

not going to dispute that.

[pipi_k]

51. But what if the placard...

didn't belong to the person driving the car?

Like I said above, Mr Pip has placard. It has his picture on it, but he uses a shield.

If we're together and he parks in a handicapped spot, I am the one who looks like I need it more than he does.

So there are times when I might drop him off at a store and go to a different store and the placard is still on the mirror. I cannot legally use that placard. But I have horribly painful knees and feet, so I park as close to the door as I can without violating the law.

You see...there are always other explanations than just people being inconsiderate assholes out to get you.

[Pithlet]

52. But you don't know that.

You have no way of knowing that placard was for them. You can't tell that simply by looking at them.

[Morning Dew]

30. It sounds like you want people with handicap stickers to be disallowed from parking in non handicap

spaces?

I don't get it.

[Horse with no Name]

34. No. I think people should be considerate.

We set aside parking spots for handicapped people because they NEED them.

Obviously there will be times when spaces are full and regular parking will have to be used.

So obviously nobody would be advocating making it illegal to park outside of those designated spots.

Nor would I.

It is plain and simple consideration for others. If you are in need of a close space, and there is one available, use it so that someone else who might need a close space but doesn't have a card MIGHT be able to park closer.

Especially if you see someone getting ready to park there and you fucking cut them off to park there instead. That is just mean and nasty.

[Obamanaut]

47. This is the bottom line of the story, isn't it.

"Especially if you see someone getting ready to park there and you fucking cut them off to park there instead. That is just mean and nasty."

[Politicalboi]

48. Maybe the person who is handicapped

Wasn't in the car, so they couldn't use the handicapped space. My mom has a placard, and I would never use it unless she was with me.

[Retrograde]

31. I did once

with the permission of the property manager. I was transporting a lot of heavy stuff for a charity event, so I asked if I could park in the unoccupied handicap area while I unloaded. When I finished I moved my car to a less accessible area.

Otherwise I say ticket them. Even when I do chauffeur people who have legitimate handicapped parking permits I drop them off and then park elsewhere.

[kick-ass-bob]

36. Hardly. Just fine the everliving shit out of them.

$2000.

[ChoppinBroccoli]

38. I Think They Should BE Handicapped

Karma's a bitch. That's why I refuse to park in handicapped spaces for any reason. Because it's my belief that if I park in a handicapped space when I don't need to, eventually there will come a day when I need to. So I say just speed up the process. If a person parks in a handicapped spot, keep a couple of thugs positioned by the front door with baseball bats and let them kneecap the inconsiderate prick on his way in to Wal-Mart.

[LiberalAndProud]

39. I hope you're only blowing off steam.

I think there are enough crimes resulting in incarceration already. I'm tired of paying for new jails and new prisons, and then reading stories in my local newspaper about a habitual criminal getting caught in the commission of a new crime while on house arrest and wearing an ankle bracelet.

[Name removed]

40. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[BellaLuna]

54. How do you know those fat asses don't have legitimate issues?

Lucky you being able to diagnose people simply because of their weight.

You should open up your own 800 psychic line.

[kctim]

57. You don't have to be psychic

to know that a fat person who parks in a handicap spot, then waddles into the store and gets on a scooter, should actually be parking further away and denied a scooter.

[davsand]

41. I have been known to let my Mom off at the door THEN I go park.

My Mom has a handicapped parking permit but she leaves it in her car. Very often, if I take her someplace, I'll drop her of at the door so she doesn't have to walk a long way then I go park the car. My mother is 82 years old, has arthritis of the spine and hips, and she had a quad bypass a year ago. She most certainly needs that permit, but hates to use it because she thinks there is probably somebody "worse off" than she is.


:banghead:


BTW, I witnessed a most amazing scene recently when I took my Mom to the grocery store. We parked in a regular space right next to a handicapped space. As we were ready to get out of our car two cars pulled up with one parking in the handicapped space next to us and an SUV parking in the handicapped space directly across from it (nose to nose, so to speak.) An elderly lady climbs out of the car next to us, and a young couple with two little kids climbs out of the SUV. NO sign of a handicapped sticker on the SUV.

That elderly lady starts SCREAMING at the young couple to move that SUV because it is parked in a handicapped space. They ignore her and proceed to unload the kids from the SUV. The lady is STILL screaming at them. They grab both kids and start to dash into the store and she FOLLOWS them all the while screaming they are parked illegally. My mom and I looked at each other and just shook our heads.

Before we could get out of the car and walk up to the doors of the store, that same couple comes out with the old lady STILL screaming at them and a store manager following the entire crew. The man gets in the SUV and moves it to a different parking place while the wife, the kids, the old lady, and the manager all watch. The wife snarls something at the old lady about being a bossy old bitch, "Are you happy now?"

The manager looks at the wife and the husband who is just walking back from re-parking, and he tells them they need to leave the premises--that they need to shop someplace else!



Laura

[Jazzgirl]

42. That is tacky.

I have a handicap sticker because of severe COPD so I can imagine how your friend feels. It's difficult to walk any distance. I know when I get out of my car and walk into the store or into work people are wondering why I have a sticker. If they had seen me the day I had to walk across half the garage because I couldn't find a closer parking place and security called the paramedics because they thought I was dying, they would understand. You can feel great as soon as you get out of the car but walk several feet and it can feel like you're carrying the world on your chest. It sucks major eggs. And I used to bodybuild!

[Obamanaut]

44. Did the other driver know that you had a person with asthma in the car with you?

I would guess not. Then, one must wonder how that other driver would possibly know that someone else may not be "...quite as disabled..."?

The other person with a handicapped sticker left all the handicapped spots open. That's a good thing.

Miz O has such a sticker. When I'm with her, we park near the outer limits of a parking lot, and she leans on me or holds my hand as we walk.

If I am not with her, she parks as close to the handicapped spaces as she can, but not in one. She says that others may be worse off than she is. But, she has no way of knowing who might come into the parking area at any time, some of whom may be some of the ones who are among the 'worse off.'

Lighten up. If you drive someone who is ambulatory, but cannot make it very far, drop them off at the door and then find a parking spot. When the errand is complete, come to the door to pick them up.

[Iggo]

49. Can we call it Caylee's Law?

:hide:

[geardaddy]

55. Oh you!

:D

[Evoman]

50. Make it legal to beat on their cars with golf clubs?

No more laws. No more citizens in jail.

[BellaLuna]

53. If your friend is more handicapped than the person with the placard

then the problem is she needs to get her own placard, not that someone who has one parked where they wanted to.

[saras]

56. Jail is silly - fines basically allow the rich to break the law

What would really make sense is to lose the driving privilege for a short time - say 30 days.

Okay, now you know what it's like when driving places isn't so easy you don't have to even think about it - maybe you'll learn something.

The local school gave up on tickets because rich kids would just pay them and continue violating, while the poor might lose their cars or the right to drive. Now they clamp a big steel clamp on your wheel, and you have to go to the security office and deal with it before you can have your car back. It's not ideal, but works a lot better than the tickets did.