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Until 2011, Ohio law dictated that any motorist who parked illegally -- say, in front of a fire hydrant, in a handicapped parking space or too far into an intersection -- would be held criminally responsible for that violation if it occurred in unincorporated areas of the state, not necessarily in municipalities or home-rule townships.
The problem was, because the driver of the vehicle isn't always necessarily the owner of the vehicle, police often would be forced to try to hunt down the driver who had parked illegally, or stand around waiting for him or her to return to the car in order to serve the driver with a traffic ticket, which in essence is a criminal citation, rather than simply leaving a parking ticket on the windshield. Parking tickets, frequently dispensed in cities, municipalities or home rule townships, are considered a civil matter involving the owner of the car.
It was 2011 when someone in Columbus finally realized how ridiculous that was. That's when Ohio Revised Code Chapter 4521 was adopted to allow Ohio townships to issue civil parking tickets by leaving them on the windshield of illegally parked vehicles for the car owners to pay.
Now, several years later, Weathersfield Township has become the first Trumbull County Township to take advantage of this 2011 rule. Trustees there recently voted to create a "Parking Violations Bureau" and very specifically spelled out the 16 "prohibited motor vehicle parking or standing" rules. The rules include things like parking within 10 feet of a fire hydrant; parking within an intersection; in a designated fire lane; more than one foot from the curb; in the grass; facing the wrong way; and much more. The resolution also dictates the fees for each infraction. Most are $10 if paid within five days. After that, they increase to $20. It's $50 for parking in a fire lane and $250 if parking in a handicapped space. And even the procedure police officers must use when writing a parking ticket is clearly identified in steps.
I read with great interest the article about the new Weathersfield Parking Violations Bureau that appeared in my newspaper a few weeks ago. Being the cynic that I am, I wanted to know more about what the township might stand to gain by adopting this procedure. So, I started asking questions.
I wondered, why would they do this? Does Weathersfield stand to generate significant revenue? How many parking tickets do these township officers usually write each year? Will this new procedure take revenue away from Niles Municipal Court?
I called the police chief, Niles Municipal Court, the township's law director. I read the state statute. I read the township's resolution. Everyone I spoke to was more than convincing that the new procedure was adopted only to simplify parking matters for police.
I also learned Ohio law states the parking fees cannot exceed what's charged in the corresponding municipal court, but illegal handicapped parking fee is set by Ohio law.
I found that, indeed, Niles Municipal Court officials had no concern about lost revenue by now routing Weathersfield Parking Tickets through a parking violations clerk, an attorney hired by the township, rather than through Niles Court. In fact, since January and before the new procedure was adopted, there has been only one Weathersfield parking ticket written and appealed in Niles Court. It amounted to a whopping total collection of $84.50 for the court.
The township's legal counsel told me there are no additional "court fees" assessed if an alleged violator challenges the parking ticket, and that further appeals still could be filed in Niles Municipal Court.
Further, if a car was parked so illegally that it was creating a danger to the public, officers still have the absolute right to call for it to be towed, with the owner being held responsible.
At the end of the day, the parking bureau seems logical to me, and it might even be something other local townships should consider.
blinert@tribtoday.com