# Maybe you shouldn't park in handicapped spaces? (mild) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 20, 2010, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413 "2010-09-20T15:29:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2010, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/61 "2010-09-23T10:46:03Z")
I’d trade my handicapped placard for a good left leg any day. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2010, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/62 "2010-09-23T10:53:06Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > > > It \*\*is \*\*OK for anyone to use a handicapped toilet. It’s not the same thing as a parking spot. Those stalls are handicap _accessible_, not handicap _reserved_. > > Have you ever tried to get a wheelchair into a non-accesible stall? I have, and it makes going to the bathroom discretely impossible! So wait until the accessible stall is open. The rest of us have to wait all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2010, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/63 "2010-09-23T10:53:18Z")
> [@China\_Guy](#): > > So, wondering what other people think about this second derivative effect? Am I being a douche when not with my daughter Yes, you’re being a douche. I understand the impulse to use the tag when your daughter isn’t around, but that’s not what it is for. You are also breaking the law. Don’t know about where you live, but if you’re caught doing this where I live not only do you get the fine for being able-bodied and using the handicapped space, you get an additional fine on top of it _and your family loses handicapped parking privileges_. If you lived in my states you’d be running a small but present risk of being forced to drag your screaming maniac from the back of the parking lot because you couldn’t walk a few extra feet when you’re by yourself. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2010, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/64 "2010-09-23T10:54:26Z")
> [@BMalion](#): > > I’d trade my handicapped placard for a good left leg any day. The same. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2010, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/65 "2010-09-23T17:40:50Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > As for the original topic, yeah, I’d like to see this idjit get hit with a ticket, and have her tag revoked. Is that fair, though? The person with the disability doesn’t stop needing to park closer just because their spouse decided to abuse the privilege. What if the spouse didn’t know the tags were being used in this way? > [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I see agile women and girls go into the handicapped stalls in restrooms all the time. The situations aren’t comparable. Leaving a handicapped parking spot open just means you have to walk farther; if you don’t use the handicapped stall, that’s completely inefficient because it’s entirely possible there isn’t another stall for you to use. Also, a stall is generally in use from a few seconds to a few minutes, versus a parking space that will be taken up for probably a minimum of fifteen minutes, all the way up to hours or days. IMO, bathroom stalls should function something like the check in counter at an airport. Think of the handicapped stall as the equivalent of the express line that’s used for people with Business/First Class tickets, frequent travelers with elite status, etc. Those people get the first shot at that special queue–if they’re there. But if they’re not, the customer service rep will take the next person from the line of people with normal tickets. So, too, with handicapped stalls–anyone who can only use that stall gets first dibs on it, but if there’s no one who fits that description, the next person in line gets to use it. To leave a handicapped stall sitting permanently idle \*just in case \*someone \*might \*need to use it is ridiculous. > [@China\_Guy](#): > > Am I being a douche when not with my daughter? Yes. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2010, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/66 "2010-09-23T19:21:27Z")
thanks for the replies as I don’t want to be a douche. And I have had the experience of being with my daughter, handicapped parking spots full of vehicles without temporary or permanent tags, and having to cancel our plans and go home. So, I certainly don’t want to cause that same experience to another handicapped person when I’m alone. I’m also checking with the Washington State DMV for clarification of what the law actually says. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/67 "2010-09-24T12:18:54Z")
Update on this story: The Washington Post got a _lot_ of replies about the woman (ab)using the handicapped tag…one columnist joked that the story has changed from “police lose woman’s car” to “woman parked in handicapped spot.” The Washington Examiner has [some sobering statistics](http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/Parking-abuses-anger-handicapped-958967-103681784.html) to offer: > [@](#): > > On Wednesday, Howard County police and state motor vehicle officials stopped motorists who pulled into handicapped spots and asked them to show disabled driver’s ID cards. Of the 42 drivers they approached, 12 were using tags that belonged to someone else, police said. > > In June, Alexandria police found that 90 percent of the drivers approached during a sting were illegally displaying someone else’s tags, Capt. David Ray told WTOP. Drivers caught with illegal tags in Virginia, Maryland or the District can be fined $250 to $500 and have the tags revoked. > > According to a University of Wisconsin study from 2002, the majority of cars parked in handicapped reserved spaces are parked there illegally, with a 70 percent violation rate in cities and 44 percent in towns. Parking is especially hard to find in Alexandria…but that **90 percent** rate is _amazing_. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/68 "2010-09-24T14:04:55Z")
Okay, _this_ ought to please all of y’all with a need for some payback. Many years ago, a family friend with a degenerative muscle disease parked her converted van in a handicapped spot. The spot had the usual striped no parking space next to it, to accomodate a chairlift. While she was at dinner, some asswipe parked his car (I don’t know what kind, but I really hope it was something expensive) in the striped space. So my friend, on returning, could not get into her van. She calmly activated the remote controlled chairlift and scraped it up and down the asswipe’s car six or seven times. Causing, I really really hope, thousands of dollars of damage. Revenge is a dish best served with a hydraulic chairlift, mofo! ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/69 "2010-09-24T14:12:31Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > Okay, _this_ ought to please all of y’all with a need for some payback. Many years ago, a family friend with a degenerative muscle disease parked her converted van in a handicapped spot. The spot had the usual striped no parking space next to it, to accomodate a chairlift. While she was at dinner, some asswipe parked his car (I don’t know what kind, but I really hope it was something expensive) in the striped space. So my friend, on returning, could not get into her van. > > She calmly activated the remote controlled chairlift and scraped it up and down the asswipe’s car six or seven times. Causing, I really really hope, thousands of dollars of damage. > > Revenge is a dish best served with a hydraulic chairlift, mofo! I love it! 😃 Though the kind of asswipe who’d park like that, is also the kind of asswipe who’d whine to the police about how his car was VANDALIZED, and sue your family friend. Presumably the friend had to wait around until asswipe returned and saw the mess? ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/70 "2010-09-24T16:00:12Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > > [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > > > Okay, _this_ ought to please all of y’all with a need for some payback. Many years ago, a family friend with a degenerative muscle disease parked her converted van in a handicapped spot. The spot had the usual striped no parking space next to it, to accomodate a chairlift. While she was at dinner, some asswipe parked his car (I don’t know what kind, but I really hope it was something expensive) in the striped space. So my friend, on returning, could not get into her van. > > > > She calmly activated the remote controlled chairlift and scraped it up and down the asswipe’s car six or seven times. Causing, I really really hope, thousands of dollars of damage. > > > > Revenge is a dish best served with a hydraulic chairlift, mofo! > > I love it! 😃 > > Though the kind of asswipe who’d park like that, is also the kind of asswipe who’d whine to the police about how his car was VANDALIZED, and sue your family friend. Presumably the friend had to wait around until asswipe returned and saw the mess? Fortunately, no. My friend was with some other friends (including my mother, who is my source for this story) and one of them was able to get into the van and back it out. Tricky, since part of the conversion for my friend’s van involved taking out the driver’s seat, so whoever it was had to sort of hunch over the pedals and the wheel. But that’s the best part - I just love imaging the look on the asswipe’s face when he came out to find his car scraped up, _and had nobody to blame._ ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/71 "2010-09-24T16:42:43Z")
But himself! ---
**Author:** ![kjckjc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e36b37/32.png) [@kjckjc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kjckjc)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/72 "2010-09-24T19:10:13Z")
> [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > I am an able-bodied person who would never think of parking in a handicapped stall; Good for you! One of the worst things for a handicapped person to find when they REALLY have to pee is a Buick in the stall. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/73 "2010-09-24T21:33:07Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > But that’s the best part - I just love imaging the look on the asswipe’s face when he came out to find his car scraped up, _and had nobody to blame._ Well, two wrongs, and all that. The textbook method would have been to call the police and have him towed. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/74 "2010-09-24T22:39:10Z")
The 2 are unrelated, yes she parked illegally but they had no right to tow any cars, the president is just not that important. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/75 "2010-09-24T23:39:37Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > but they had no right to tow any cars, the president is just not that important. Uh, having a car towed counts as something important? Low-rent condo dwellers in my area can have cars towed with a phone call, but in your world the President of the United States can’t do that? He has to settle for having intercontinental ballistic missiles? ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2010, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/76 "2010-09-25T00:45:17Z")
> [@kjckjc](#): > > > [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > > > I am an able-bodied person who would never think of parking in a handicapped stall; > > Good for you! One of the worst things for a handicapped person to find when they REALLY have to pee is a Buick in the stall. 😃 Hehe. Thank you for this. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2010, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/77 "2010-09-25T00:56:24Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > > [@kanicbird](#): > > > > but they had no right to tow any cars, the president is just not that important. > > Uh, having a car towed counts as something important? > > Low-rent condo dwellers in my area can have cars towed with a phone call, but in your world the President of the United States can’t do that? He has to settle for having intercontinental ballistic missiles? Sailboat, you know kanicbird lives in his own little world. Please let him stay there. ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2010, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/78 "2010-09-25T01:29:02Z")
My friend’s mom has a handicapped tag on her car. Whenever we take that car out we park in handicapped spots. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2010, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/79 "2010-09-25T01:40:58Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > My friend’s mom has a handicapped tag on her car. Whenever we take that car out we park in handicapped spots. 🙂 I thought you were cool, man. That ain’t cool. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2010, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413/80 "2010-09-25T01:43:24Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > > [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > > > My friend’s mom has a handicapped tag on her car. Whenever we take that car out we park in handicapped spots. 🙂 > > I thought you were cool, man. That ain’t cool. ☹ Yeah, not cool. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maybe-you-shouldnt-park-in-handicapped-spaces-mild/554413.md?page=5)