# Tickets for parking the wrong way on a street. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2003, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792 "2003-11-23T03:41:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ac91a4/32.png) [@Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knighted_Vorpal_Sword)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/21 "2003-11-23T14:44:27Z")
I live on a small, quiet street, and one morning many of my neighbors woke up to find parking tickets on their windshields. They had all parked the “wrong way.” An officer from our neighborhood patrol told me that there is not even a category for this printed on the ticket - an officer has to write it in by “other.” ---
**Author:** ![Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ac91a4/32.png) [@Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knighted_Vorpal_Sword)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/22 "2003-11-23T14:46:37Z")
I should add that I was on citizen patrol one night, and the officer with me spotted a car parked “the wrong way” - on a one way street. He put a ticket on the car for driving the wrong way on a one way street. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/23 "2003-11-23T15:06:10Z")
“I’ve heard that in Hollywood people have been cited for having their tires turned the wrong way when parked on a hill.” Yep, SF too. Makes sense too. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/24 "2003-11-23T15:37:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*originally posted by \*\*_Nametag_ > > Bologna. If I back out of my driveway and park in front of my house facing the “wrong way,” I have at no time driven “the wrong way” down the street, yet I would still get a ticket. There’s no sense or fairness in it, and I’ve yet to see a convincing explanation of why it should be this way. Well in NJ (I don’t know about other states) it is illegal to back out of your driveway. I don’t know how often people actually get ticketed for it though, but I would assume its pretty rare. ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/25 "2003-11-23T16:03:36Z")
Parking on the wrong side of the street puts the drivers seat farthest from traffic. If the other parked vehicles are tall enough, you won’t see the oncoming traffic until your car is almost completely blocking their lane. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/26 "2003-11-23T17:01:12Z")
“Whiny neighbour,” huh? Or perhaps the police just happened to notice the vehicle was there in plain view? ---
**Author:** ![hyjyljyj](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/0ea827/32.png) [@hyjyljyj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hyjyljyj)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/27 "2003-11-23T17:11:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by x-ray vision \* > \*\*Well in NJ (I don’t know about other states) it is illegal to back out of your driveway. I don’t know how often people actually get ticketed for it though, but I would assume its pretty rare. \*\* Illegal to back out your driveway! Yeesh. So this means either you have to walk or bicycle from now on, stay home forever, have a circular drive, or one that goes straight through to a road, or you have to back INTO your driveway. This last option sure doesn’t make for any unsafe travel, as drivers in front of you suddenly put on the brakes and start driving in reverse, craning their necks and trying to steer the car into a narrow opening across the center line and two lanes of traffic. Make enough things illegal, and it’s easy to justify a police state to control the criminals, which is the entire population. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/28 "2003-11-23T17:13:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SeekingTruth \* > \*\*One last quick thought on this. I did actually get a ticket reversed for street cleaning. Try this if you have to. > > Call the person in charge of city traffic parking, the head of the street dept, etc. repeat with the Chief of police and anyone else you can think of til you get the right person. > > DO NOT be confrontational. Begin by explaining the situation and that you didn’t know it was illegal to park that way, if needed add that no harm was done to anyone’s property (if this applies) and humble yourself by promising not to do it again now that you know the law. Unless you live in a VERY small town, the person won’t know you from a stranger. > > If the ticket will stand, go to traffic court. Most cites are in municipal court, see if you can get it transferred to district court, this gives you the option of a jury trial. (hey, if it’s possible in your area, it puts the DA in a position to prosecute a ticket). > > If you can get this far request a public defender, few districts are going to spend tax dollars on a traffic ticket. Hey, you pay taxes to fund the courts, exhaust all options. > > Finally, if it’s something this meaningless where NOBODY complained (parking laws are for convenience of citizens) you can argue that you were the victim of selective enforcement since there is always something better for an officer to do. Might seem weak, but OJ is still golfing. > > Still no resolution? Pay the fine then get your money’s worth. An op-ed to the local paper is free, easy, a good vent to frustration, protected by the 1st amendment, and next time you get hit, you can claim the PD was out to get you for what you wrote. > > I could be wrong, but it worked for me \*\* I talked to the guy who wrote the ticket. I think he was…oh hell, I forget his rank, either Captain or Police Cheif of the city police. Anyway, he was pretty nice about it, he talked forever though, I thought he’d never shut up, but anyway, the ticket he wrote for parking the wrong way he couldn’t take back, and since it’s only $10, I’m just going to pay it, I mean, why fight $10? ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/29 "2003-11-23T17:19:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by x-ray vision \* > \*\*Well in NJ (I don’t know about other states) it is illegal to back out of your driveway. I don’t know how often people actually get ticketed for it though, but I would assume its pretty rare. \*\* Illegal to back out? At my house, I drive head first into my garage, and then I have no way out but to back out. I guess I could spend a few minutes trying to turn my car around in my driveway, if I wanted to be late for work or get up extra early every morning. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/30 "2003-11-23T17:21:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Monty \* > \*\*“Whiny neighbour,” huh? Or perhaps the police just happened to notice the vehicle was there in plain view? \*\* No, I was told that I got a ticket because of a complaint. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/31 "2003-11-23T17:50:05Z")
Thanks, Joel. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/32 "2003-11-23T20:19:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SeekingTruth \* > \*\*Most cites are in municipal court, see if you can get it transferred to district court, this gives you the option of a jury trial. \*\* Actually, most traffic violation citation cases are held in traffic court. Since this is not a federal case, you can never get it into a district court. You can appeal to a state court and all the way up the state court system to the SC of the state, and possibly even to SCOTUS. You always have the option of a jury trial in the lower court, but you will have to pay the costs of a jury. SC law prohibits parking so that the right-hand wheels are more than 18 inches from the curb. So if you are parking the wrong way, the right-hand wheels will exceed that limitation. ---
**Author:** ![SeekingTruth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@SeekingTruth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeekingTruth)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/33 "2003-11-23T22:28:11Z")
Sorry, I think I meant state court, but with every state using it’s own system, you can see where the confusion may enter. I still say write an op-ed piece. Lame tickets for the purpose of funding the city are never reviewed unless the citizens speak up. I’ll r4elent from the thread now, thanks for reading ---
**Author:** ![PosterChild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e274bd/32.png) [@PosterChild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PosterChild)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/34 "2003-11-23T22:45:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by hyjyljyj \* > \*\*Illegal to back out your driveway! Yeesh. So this means either you have to walk or bicycle from now on, stay home forever, have a circular drive, or one that goes straight through to a road, or you have to back INTO your driveway. This last option sure doesn’t make for any unsafe travel, as drivers in front of you suddenly put on the brakes and start driving in reverse, craning their necks and trying to steer the car into a narrow opening across the center line and two lanes of traffic. > > Make enough things illegal, and it’s easy to justify a police state to control the criminals, which is the entire population. \*\* I’ve come across a number of neighborhoods where the cars somehow were parked in the driveways facing toward the street. As it was explained to me: it was safer to back into a private driveway than a busy (with cars or kids) street. Although from some of the driving I’ve seen recently I imagine some people might miss if they had to back into a driveway. PC ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/35 "2003-11-23T23:50:50Z")
That is a law in my area also. The neighbors warned me about it when we first moved in. I didn’t think it was that big a deal until my kids started school. We walk the short distance to school and I see some parents who drive park facing the wrong direction nearly daily. They then often turn around in a big circle in order to head back the other direction. It really is hazardous, especially with a gaggle of goofy elementary school kids in the area. I think it sounds like a sensible rule. I can’t imagine it’s that much harder for anyone to cross the street after parking. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/36 "2003-11-24T00:07:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bearflag70 \* > \*\*Without actually witnessing the driver going the wrong way, no ticket for it. > \*\* So you’d claim that if there is no witness to a murder, no one can ever be arrested for that crime? Nonsense! Conviction on any offense is based on the weight of the evidence. An eyewitness testimony is often convincing evidence, but it’s not the only kind accepted in court. The very fact that your car is in that position is clear proof that it had to have travelled the wrong way on the road to get there. And that’s enough for the officer to issue you a ticket. Just like a recent case here where a drunk person was found asleep behind the wheel of a car parked on the side of the road. They were charged with DWI, even thought they were not seen driving the vehicle by the officer. And the charge was upheld in the Courts, even thru appeals. Based on the common sense fact that the car clearly did not get there by magic, but was driven by this person, while drunk. ---
**Author:** ![Capt\_B.Phart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc29f/32.png) [@Capt\_B.Phart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt_B.Phart)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/37 "2003-11-24T01:29:02Z")
In the UK you can park the “wrong” way - and yes, it means crossing to the other side of the road - I can’t say I’ve ever noticed this being dangerous or causing problems - even in busy shopping streets, after all you’re gonna _look_ before doing it (I’ve seen plenty of other damn-fool manoeuvres tho’…) ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/38 "2003-11-24T09:44:58Z")
I’d always assumed it would be because, at night, you would have no reflectors facing the traffic causing a possible accident. ---
**Author:** ![Schnauzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@Schnauzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnauzer)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/39 "2003-11-24T11:05:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Capt B. Phart \* > \*\*In the UK you can park the “wrong” way - and yes, it means crossing to the other side of the road - I can’t say I’ve ever noticed this being dangerous or causing problems - even in busy shopping streets, after all you’re gonna _look_ before doing it (I’ve seen plenty of other damn-fool manoeuvres tho’…) \*\* Be aware, Capt, that it is illegal to park the “wrong” way at night. ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792/40 "2003-11-24T14:21:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by barbitu8 \* > \*\*SC law prohibits parking so that the right-hand wheels are more than 18 inches from the curb. So if you are parking the wrong way, the right-hand wheels will exceed that limitation. \*\* So I guess that means there’s no parking on the left side of a one-way street? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tickets-for-parking-the-wrong-way-on-a-street/214792.md?page=3)