City of Fresno envelope FAIL
So I got a parking ticket today, and I'm going to use this opportunity to call a big-fat fail on the City of Fresno. Why? Because I'm guilty as all heck but still angry about it (more on that in a minute). But why am I being told to send my fine to San Jose?
Sure, I may have been parked in the wrong direction on my own residential street in front of my own house. And one can argue that I don't know the right way to park. But apparently, the city doesn't know where its post office box should be located. Do you know the way to Fresno?
Now, on to why I shouldn't have been given a ticket ...
I mean, c'mon, man! I wasn't hurting anyone. It's a wide street. There are no cars around. I don't really care about the legality of the issue, let's use our common sense here.
Did someone call it in? Maybe it was the same DB who gave me four flat tires one morning a couple of years back.
Either way, are you that bored? That you'd park your car, get out, run my plates, write a ticket and then move on with your day? I'm assuming it's a police officer because I don't see meter maids rollin' down my street.
Now cops, I see a lot of them. I live in the Tower District. And while I've never had an issue, there was a pretty big drug bust a few blocks down from me that made the paper last month. Which brings up a bigger issue: Don't you have better things to do?
I've seen prostitutes out in the open during daylight hours and everything. I've seen so many traffic violations that I've stopped getting worked up over them, not to mention police cars that have cut me off in traffic, not using turn signals and almost causing accidents.
But forgive me for parking faced in the wrong direction. In front of my own house.
Don't worry, I'll pay the fine. I was guilty. I'm just complaining. Now what other city was I supposed to send it to again?
Comments:
I thought the same thing when I got a ticket for an expired meter downtown. Why the hell are we sending the payment to San Jose?
I hope someone can chime in with a semi-intelligent answer.
Posted by: MsJoey at December 4, 2008 3:51 PM
Uh, because Mumbai has other priorities right now?
Posted by: Chase Sanborn at December 4, 2008 4:10 PM
Holy Crap this is the stupidest new excuse for a ticket ever! What difference does it make which direction your car is facing as long as it's tucked neatly near the curb and not blocking traffic. I have not done this, so I guess I'm a law abiding citizen, but wow I too can think of many more things that are a real threat to society.
Posted by: Aileen at December 4, 2008 4:22 PM
Surely we have qualified people who live in Fresno who can process our parking tickets...whether they are justified or not. Surely people in Fresno get enough tickets to justify hiring Fresnans to perform this valuable service. Why are we sending local money to San Jose for this???
Posted by: Jamie at December 4, 2008 4:37 PM
The reason you send the payment to San Jose is most likely because the City of Fresno pays another company to process the tickets. It's cheaper and more cost effective. I've seen this in other cities (as well as Universities).
Posted by: Ian at December 4, 2008 4:49 PM
I once did the same thing. Was just coming back to my house real quick to grab something I'd forgotten. Same situation, wide street, no one for miles (except the police car) , and I live in a small quiet 'outlying'
town.
The policeman gave me a stern look and used a parental voice, but he didn't write me a ticket.
---this is from the same police force that had three squad cars (including a K-9 unit) watching as they were trimming some trees on our street a couple of years back. Now I'm HAPPY that the police are so bored in our town that this was an 'event' for them to watch.
Now in Clovis (cue Darth Vader music), back in the day, I was returning from watching a band practice and a policeman pulls me over for speeding around Shaw and Clovis Avenue. I told the delusional officer of the law that my car ( a Pinto that had a bad oil leak and a very 'iffy' clutch and transmission) that my car did not *go* that fast. [later, in a display of cosmic justice (dontcha love it?) the JUDGE did not show for the court date (I wasn't gonna just PAY the darn thing). The secretary said that in all her years this had not happened with this judge. I said my prayer of thanks, and headed on down the highway (at a blistering 35mph).
(did I ramble?----I'm just so ready for the BEEHIVE PARTY!)
Posted by: blake at December 4, 2008 9:06 PM
Ian is right, they pay an out-of-town company to process the tickets. Fresno State does the same thing with their parking tickets. Not sure why there isn't a Fresno-based company that can do this.
As for getting the ticket in the first place, I agree, it's dumb. But since they get a percentage of these tickets now, I'm pretty sure officers have a daily quota they must meet. Which is also rather stupid.
Posted by: Bryan at December 5, 2008 11:07 AM
Post a comment
(read the comment policy before posting)