Apparently word travels fast—at least among habitual parking violators, anyway.
As of January 1, a loophole closed that previously allowed offenders of unpaid parking tickets to go unpunished, and while it’s a little too early see any concrete trends, City officials say for now it appears those who took advantage in the past may have gotten the message. And that message is roughly: We’re on to your little game and we’re not gonna take it anymore.
 Habitual parking offenders will have to find other ways to beat the $15 ticket. So far no one has asked to go to court. |
Because parking tickets can be appealed in the General District Court for a trial, street-savvy individuals would challenge their parking tickets in court. If they failed to appear, the court would take no action against them, and the tickets were basically dropped. Court records indicated that some habitual offenders caught on to this, and used the loophole to park free citywide. Not a bad way to beat a $15 to $100 parking ticket.
Ric Barrick, Charlottesville’s director of communications, says that as of the third week in January nobody had challenged a parking ticket in court.
The new City code states that “summons to appear in General District Court will no longer be issued, unless a request is made to the City Treasurer’s Office within 96 hours of the issue date,” and, “If you request a hearing within 96 hours of the issue date and do not appear, you will be tried in your absence.” Additionally, three or more unsettled parking violations mean a possible trip to the impound (since your car will be towed) or immobilization (the boot). And of course, failure to pay could mean either suspension or revocation of your driver’s license.