DC driver with $12k in tickets flees US Park police, kills 3 people

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:From the website above:
The total of all your citations and fees is: $17280.00

Why the hell was this car not booted?!

If you boot the car, how will he get to work to make money to pay the tickets?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the website above:
The total of all your citations and fees is: $17280.00

Why the hell was this car not booted?!

do you know how many people DC has on staff to boot vehicles?

I don't understand how DC doesn't add a few more boot / impound crews already.
That, or pay a bounty to tow operators who see them and bring them to an impound lot.
The money they could recover would more than pay for it and provide a good amount of revenue for additional traffic, safety improvements and other city projects and programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the website above:
The total of all your citations and fees is: $17280.00

Why the hell was this car not booted?!

do you know how many people DC has on staff to boot vehicles?

I don't understand how DC doesn't add a few more boot / impound crews already.
That, or pay a bounty to tow operators who see them and bring them to an impound lot.
The money they could recover would more than pay for it and provide a good amount of revenue for additional traffic, safety improvements and other city projects and programs.

DC used to do exactly that decades ago until the city was overwhelmed with reports of predatory, illegal towing and had to put a stop to it. It's not the answer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the website above:
The total of all your citations and fees is: $17280.00

Why the hell was this car not booted?!

do you know how many people DC has on staff to boot vehicles?

I don't understand how DC doesn't add a few more boot / impound crews already.
That, or pay a bounty to tow operators who see them and bring them to an impound lot.
The money they could recover would more than pay for it and provide a good amount of revenue for additional traffic, safety improvements and other city projects and programs.

DC used to do exactly that decades ago until the city was overwhelmed with reports of predatory, illegal towing and had to put a stop to it. It's not the answer.

I seem to recall there were also serious reforms made to the DC towing industry after the big outcry.

And again, the parameters of my proposal are, if they see a vehicle with multiple existing unpaid tickets, they can tow it to a city-owned impound lot, in exchange for either a flat fee or some percentage of the outstanding amount.

That limits their "predatory" behavior to existing traffic offenders (boo hoo, too bad, pay your damn tickets!) and takes them out of the equation, once the vehicle has been towed. And if it's low-income people, the city could have an appeals process where they waive some or all of the outstanding tickets based on qualified documentation (tax filing) but also warn them that they won't continue waiving them.

[Anonymous]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Only 4 crews. And teens were out on my street right after booting, working to get the boots off. What does it even matter if they don't tow immediately and kid criminals are savvy enough to remove boots?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Park on private property or in a garage? In this city, that costs more than the damn tickets! What is wrong with these a-hole scofflaws?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Only 4 crews. And teens were out on my street right after booting, working to get the boots off. What does it even matter if they don't tow immediately and kid criminals are savvy enough to remove boots?

For less than 1% of the amount of the outstanding tickets the city could run two dozen tow truck crews 24x7.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Park on private property or in a garage? In this city, that costs more than the damn tickets! What is wrong with these a-hole scofflaws?

If they come in for work they are probably parking in their work parking garage at a discounted or subsidized rate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Only 4 crews. And teens were out on my street right after booting, working to get the boots off. What does it even matter if they don't tow immediately and kid criminals are savvy enough to remove boots?

For less than 1% of the amount of the outstanding tickets the city could run two dozen tow truck crews 24x7.

Where would they tow the cars? The city has one impound lot (Blue Plains). It's always full, even now. Having financial agreements with private towing companies opens up a world of problems, as anyone who lived in DC in the 1990s knows too well, and the city will never go back to that system. And DC isn't going to create new impound lots (imagine the YIMBY howls).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Only 4 crews. And teens were out on my street right after booting, working to get the boots off. What does it even matter if they don't tow immediately and kid criminals are savvy enough to remove boots?

For less than 1% of the amount of the outstanding tickets the city could run two dozen tow truck crews 24x7.

Where would they tow the cars? The city has one impound lot (Blue Plains). It's always full, even now. Having financial agreements with private towing companies opens up a world of problems, as anyone who lived in DC in the 1990s knows too well, and the city will never go back to that system. And DC isn't going to create new impound lots (imagine the YIMBY howls).

Ah well, do nothing and shrug it is then?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Only 4 crews. And teens were out on my street right after booting, working to get the boots off. What does it even matter if they don't tow immediately and kid criminals are savvy enough to remove boots?

For less than 1% of the amount of the outstanding tickets the city could run two dozen tow truck crews 24x7.

Where would they tow the cars? The city has one impound lot (Blue Plains). It's always full, even now. Having financial agreements with private towing companies opens up a world of problems, as anyone who lived in DC in the 1990s knows too well, and the city will never go back to that system. And DC isn't going to create new impound lots (imagine the YIMBY howls).

None of these are good excuses.

If people aren't reclaiming their vehicles from the impound lot, they should be auctioned off. Make a good faith effort to contact the owner, give them a certain, fixed amount of time to make good on their obligations. Only excuse could be financial status - verified via their tax filing, along with something like a three-strikes rule, because being poor doesn't excuse you to speed, run red lights or do other stupid things. If you persist in being an idiot behind the wheel, get your car impounded, and then you lose it because it get auctioned off, that's a choice you made.

As I understand it, the towing companies came under much stricter regulation. Pointing back to a much more lax regulatory paradigm 30 years ago is irrelevant and doesn't cut it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the website above:
The total of all your citations and fees is: $17280.00

Why the hell was this car not booted?!

If you boot the car, how will he get to work to make money to pay the tickets?

Give me a break. He's clearly not working to pay those tickets down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Only 4 crews. And teens were out on my street right after booting, working to get the boots off. What does it even matter if they don't tow immediately and kid criminals are savvy enough to remove boots?

For less than 1% of the amount of the outstanding tickets the city could run two dozen tow truck crews 24x7.

Where would they tow the cars? The city has one impound lot (Blue Plains). It's always full, even now. Having financial agreements with private towing companies opens up a world of problems, as anyone who lived in DC in the 1990s knows too well, and the city will never go back to that system. And DC isn't going to create new impound lots (imagine the YIMBY howls).

None of these are good excuses.

If people aren't reclaiming their vehicles from the impound lot, they should be auctioned off. Make a good faith effort to contact the owner, give them a certain, fixed amount of time to make good on their obligations. Only excuse could be financial status - verified via their tax filing, along with something like a three-strikes rule, because being poor doesn't excuse you to speed, run red lights or do other stupid things. If you persist in being an idiot behind the wheel, get your car impounded, and then you lose it because it get auctioned off, that's a choice you made.

As I understand it, the towing companies came under much stricter regulation. Pointing back to a much more lax regulatory paradigm 30 years ago is irrelevant and doesn't cut it.

Nope. The towing companies were ignoring rules that already were on the books, and they haven't changed those rules since. It took a pretty sizable number of media reports about people getting their cars towed illegally -- or, in one case, a tow-lot operator selling a woman's car for scrap before she knew it had been towed there -- to get DC to do anything about them.

This is guaranteed to happen again should the city go this route.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2023/05/02/dc-traffic-tickets-driving-penalties/

More than 2,100 vehicles have at least 40 outstanding tickets, according to data from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, and about 1,200 cars are linked to fines exceeding $20,000 over the past five years. Topping the list of offenders is a car with Maryland tags that has 339 outstanding tickets worth $186,000 in fines and penalties.

"Vehicles can rack up fines over years — which the car’s owner is responsible for paying — but the person or people driving those cars can keep their licenses if they do not pay."

Since 2000, more than 3 million photo-issued tickets have gone unpaid in the city for a total of $840.8 million, which includes a doubling of original fines and a 20 percent collection fee applied to outstanding tickets. An additional 2.9 million parking tickets also have gone unpaid, for an extra $398 million in fines and penalties, DMV records show.

For now, the city relies on booting and towing vehicles in hopes that drivers will pay their ticket debts to recover their vehicle. But with only four crews assigned to booting, officials said it is impossible to target high-risk drivers because city workers do not know their locations. Babers said it is likely that offenders “are aware that we boot and tow so they may then park the vehicle in a garage or on private property,” which is off-limits to city crews.

Only 4 crews. And teens were out on my street right after booting, working to get the boots off. What does it even matter if they don't tow immediately and kid criminals are savvy enough to remove boots?

For less than 1% of the amount of the outstanding tickets the city could run two dozen tow truck crews 24x7.

Where would they tow the cars? The city has one impound lot (Blue Plains). It's always full, even now. Having financial agreements with private towing companies opens up a world of problems, as anyone who lived in DC in the 1990s knows too well, and the city will never go back to that system. And DC isn't going to create new impound lots (imagine the YIMBY howls).

Ah well, do nothing and shrug it is then?

No, do something that actually is possible. There is literally no place to put these thousands of towed cars you're dreaming of.