Prior to moving to LA over the weekend, it stood as the city where we'd received the most parking/traffic tickets that we'd never lived in or near. And of course, our first night in our new place, we managed to get two parking tickets. Back in 1995, we and our erstwhile friend Jeff trekked down from the East Bay to catch All at the Whisky on a school night. We parked up a side street from the club. When we returned, Jeff's truck was gone, having fallen victim to a blocked no parking sign and the whims of the LA County Sheriff's tow-truck toolin' goon squad, seemingly stranding us in the wilds of West Hollywood some 400 miles from the next morning's class.
Luckily, we were rescued by a recent law-school who let us use his girlfriend's phone, and drove us to the tow yard to collect the legally-pilfered Nissan Hardbody. Plenty of Los Angeles residents were in similar straits (without the guardian lawyer) over the weekend as tow trucks prowled the streets looking for illegally-parked cars in preparation for Hollywood's annual Christmas parade, and some folks were understandably hoppin' mad. While we know that some folks simply chanced it and got nailed, we feel the pain of those who fell prey to blocked signs. And yes, we did get back to the East Bay in time for class back in '95. Those LA parking officials may be ruthless bastards, but at least they're efficient ruthless bastards.
Drivers Of Towed Cars Cry Foul After Christmas Parade [NBC4]
Related:
Anything for More Coin: Cities Push Techy Parking Meters [Internal]