KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
Officers with the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) cited 12 individuals Monday for misusing disabled parking placards at the Valencia Target, officials said.
On Monday starting at 8 a.m., officers with the DMV investigations division made contact with approximately 120 drivers who were using disabled parking placards at the Target on Magic Mountain Parkway, said Paula Lucero, deputy chief for the division.
Of the 120 drivers contacted, 12 were cited for reportedly misusing them, according to officials.
“The Department of Motor Vehicles issues handicap placards for individuals who need them, and they can either be permanent or temporary,” Lucero said.
Once a month, the DMV conducts Disabled Parking Placard Enforcements to help ensure that individuals are not misusing the placards.
See Related: DMV Cracks Down On Disabled Parking Placard Fraud
“We want to make sure the people assigned the placards are using them properly,” Lucero said. “We are here to enforce the laws and to educate the public by being proactive in doing these enforcements.”
When a person is issued a disabled parking placard, they are given a registration card with their name and placard number on it, according to officials.
In order for the placard to be used legally, the person who the card is issued to must be present, according to officials.
During the enforcement, DMV officers made contact with all drivers who were parked in a disabled parking spot to make sure the person who the placard was assigned to was present, Lucero said.
Due to all disabilities not being visual, officials urge Santa Clarita residents to not assume someone is misusing disabled parking spots just because they don’t see them using a walker, wheelchair or cane, according to officials.
“Some people may have heart or lung problems, which is not visible,” said Jaime Garza, a spokesperson for the DMV, in a previous KHTS article.
DMV officials also want to remind the public that it is illegal to use “no parking” areas next to a disabled spot for loading or unloading their vehicles.
“These spots are used for vans that have ramps used to get people with wheelchairs out of the car,” Garza said.
The DMV conducts these enforcements to help ensure that residents don’t misuse placards, so the ones who need these parking spots can have them, according to officials.
“The whole idea about coming out here and being proactive rather than reactive is really to give those people who are in need of the placard a place to park,” Lucero said. “A lot of the time, people use these placards in an illegal manner because they want to get closer to whatever store they’re going to, or maybe they don’t want to pay the parking meter.”
The people who are cited are generally not happy about the enforcements; however, the ones who legally use their placards tend to be supportive, according to officials.
“Those who have placards in their name are very receptive while we are there,” Lucero said. “They thank us because there is a reason why they have that placard, and for them to park three or four rows down, it’s hard on them.”
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Why not publish the name of the offender.
Or tattoo their foreheads with a red “H”…
Thank god and the DMV for finally enforcing the law with these placard’s. My husband is in a wheelchair due to losing his leg. And it’s very frustrating when we see people in handicap spots with 15 kids in their car and they really don’t need this placard they just wanna park closer. So thank you very much for enforcing the law on this the disabled People really need this.
Hahaha good.
They need to shame the people using them illegally and post their names in the Signal or other ways of getting them out there.
Finally. Misuse of handicap placards is rampant in CA. Despicable examples every day are so frustrating for real handicap and just plain law abiding citizens. I contend there is more community revenue in citing unlawful handicap parking citations than issuing speeding tickets. Yes, publish the names.
I fully concur with everyone who has said that the names of these scumbags should be publicized. It worked quite well in the early years of our nation when offenders were put in stocks in the public square to face the ridicule of their fellow citizens. I’m thinking that publicizing their names just might stop them from attempting this in the future.
Is being Fat really considered a Handicap?? Or is it another form of placard abuse because they want to park closer?
Mike & Dennis: No, no, no!! We’re not suppose to shame or ridicule people with bad behavior—Remember, I’m OK you’re OK, everything is right, nothings wrong—they hear a different drummer drumming. They found the wide blue space, to be a safe space. People who have chosen to be fat, will scam the system so people who truly need it will be severely inconvenienced from their lazy, Sloven lifestyles!! Can one imagine being in a wheelchair or missing a leg?!?!!