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Posted by David Sherman on Friday, January 09, 2009 at 21:09:48 :
In Reply to: A Little Clarification posted by Leon in PA on Friday, January 09, 2009 at 20:23:36 :
If it was me, I'd find the exact wording, because that's what they're citing you for violating, before I paid the fine. It looks like there are two different things here -- one is some ordinance against having unregistered vehicles outside for more than 30 days, the other is zoning code that governs permissible land uses. In the first case, it would be worth $500 to me to actually go and look up what the law says. The code enforcement officer may not even know, or he may have assumed you'd left the car out for more than 30 days, when you hadn't. In both cases, it's also important to find the section on penalties. Sometimes laws are written where they forget to put anything in about penalties. In other cases there is a very specific procedure about who can cite you and how you can appeal it.
We all hate this bureaucratic foolishness, but the law is all about the details. The fact that he immediately dropped the fine from $8000 to $500 tells me he might be on thin ice with any fine at all. If you do appeal it, probably to the planning & zoning commission or the county council, or perhaps to a magistrate, you really need to know exactly what the law says. They don't want a long story about how you were going to register the car next week and it's really not junky looking and the neighbor lady who probably complained is psycho, etc. What they want to hear is "According to paragraph x.x.xx, unlicensed vehicles may left out for no more than 30 days, and mine has only been out for 20 days", or "The zoning ordinance defines a junkyard as a _business_, and so it does not apply to non-commercial uses", or "according to common law, parking of a homeowner's vehicle on the property of their principle residence is considered an accessory use." I'm not saying any of these arguments is appropriate in your case, but you need something equally specific.
If, when you read all the ordinances, it turns out you really did violate it, and the code compliance guy really did have the right to fine you, the best you can do is go to the commission or magistrate and apologize for your ignorance, explain that you have now moved the car indoors (or gotten it licensed), maybe show them a picture of your neat and tidy yard to prove it, and plead for the fine to be waived. But first, find out what the law really says.
In our city, admittedly a small one, we have a planning and zoning code that realistically has no teeth in it. The city attorney has to file a civil suit against anyone who violates the code, and the mayor doesn't want to pay for that kind of thing unless it's really serious. Hence, very little gets enforced, which is really pretty much the way most folks here want it.
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