More eyes on parking cheaters

A spike in tickets, the opening of a new downtown garage and a recent newspaper series appear to have parking cheaters on the run.

In May, The Post and Courier Watchdog team exposed how motorists in search of free and convenient parking illegally used parking privileges intended for the disabled.

The series, "Parking Cheaters," also revealed how the state Department of Motor Vehicles does little to help law enforcement curb such abuses.

In the six months since the series began:

• The city beefed up its parking enforcement team and wrote more tickets.

• The Medical University of South Carolina, where many of the downtown parking abuses were concentrated, recently opened a new parking garage.

• And Lowcountry residents, responding to the newspaper's series, took matters into their own hands, sending in photos and tips about parking cheats. Residents acting as public watchdogs in their own communities helped the newspaper identify numerous instances of parking abuses, including public officials trying to beat the system.

Still, while residents and city leaders say fewer people in downtown Charleston might be misusing those familiar blue and red placards that hang from people's rear-view mirrors, others say the root cause — the issuance and enforcement of the placards — still needs fixing.

Sen. Vincent Sheheen, D-Camden, said he intends to reintroduce legislation that would strengthen requirements for receiving a placard and give law enforcement more tools to flag cheaters.

Sheheen sponsored a similar bill last year, but it stalled in the House after clearing the Senate. "It tightens up the definition of who is handicapped so that doctors have more objective criteria to go by," he said. "I'm hopeful we will have a strong chance."

The bill also would link a handicapped placard to the holder's photo, Sheehan said, "so you won't have a grandson using his grandmother's placard."

The Post and Courier's on-line center for investigative reporting.

Are you ticked off by people who illegally use handicap placards? Want to know which restaurants are making you sick or which gas stations have bad pumps?

Check out what our Watchdog reporters found.

Rep. David Mack III of North Charleston recently met with members of the nonprofit Disabilities Resource Center to hear their concerns about parking abuses and look at photos the group took as part of a project to document parking issues and other mobility obstacles.

Mack said he may file an identical bill in the House to improve the legislation's chances.

"I think it's just inexcusable for a person who doesn't have a disability to park in a handicapped parking space," Mack said.

"We have an obligation to help these folks who need those spaces."

Ruth Jones, one of the center's board members and a wheelchair user, is circulating a petition in support of the bill.

Jones hopes to organize a trip to Columbia after the bill is re-introduced early next year so disabled people can testify about the need for a stronger law and hand-deliver petitions to lawmakers. "This entitlement has made the placards a desirable commodity and, unfortunately, introduced abuse."

Jones said she has noticed a new awareness toward handicapped parking practices where she lives in Goose Creek. She recently saw a town police officer ticketing a car illegally parked in a retail store parking space reserved for a handicapped person.

"I thanked the officer, and told her how much the abuse complicates life for people in wheelchairs," Jones said.

Charleston parking officials said they've adjusted their tactics when it comes to confronting people who might be trying to score free parking using ill-gotten handicap placards.

Frank Rupp, a resident near Cannon Park, which is a block from the Medical University of South Carolina, said nearly every space around the park used to have cars sporting hang tags.

"We have noticed a definite, positive difference in the reduced improper use of handicap placards as well as better enforcement of the residential parking sticker requirement," Rupp said.

In March, the city moved parking enforcement duties from the police department to its revenue collections division. This loosened up budget dollars and helped the city hire more parking enforcement officers.

Under the direction of Paul Campbell, parking enforcement officers were trained to approach handicap placard users in a sensitive manner, said Colleen Carducci, a director in the city's budget and finance department.

She said the city also began scrutinizing placards more carefully, and if parking enforcement officers had any question about the placard's validity, they wrote citations. In June, a month after the series, parking enforcement officers wrote 335 citations, about 145 more than this year's monthly average.

Carducci speculated that as people see parking enforcement officials confront people and write citations, word might be getting out that misusing handicap placards carries some risks.

The situation around MUSC also may have improved because of the opening of a new 1,500-space parking garage in September, said Melinda Anderson, MUSC director of parking management.

"There could be an indirect effect on street parking because for the first time ever we have enough space for our employees and students," she said.

Janet Schumacher, the city's Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator, said the newspaper's parking stories also helped focus the public's attention on the issue and helped "air out the subject."

Residents responded to the series with dozens of tips to a special Watchdog online feature, fingering dozens of parking scammers, including contractors who parked in handicap spots, even a state lawmaker, Sen. Robert Ford, who was caught parking in a fire lane. His response: "Every person in the country does it."

Reach <strong>Ron Menchaca</strong> at <a href="mailto:rmenchaca@postandcourier.com">rmenchaca@postandcourier.com</a> or 937-5724. Reach <strong>Tony Bartelme</strong>at <a href="mailto:tbartelme@postandcourier.com">tbartelme@postandcourier.com</a> or at 937-5554.

Copyright © 1995 - 2010 Evening Post Publishing Co..