Washington Traffic Law Blog : Washington Traffic Lawyer & Attorney : Jon Zimmerman Law Firm : Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma

In one of the latest examples of charging more and providing less, the City of Seattle has decided to institute pay parking in the City's Fremont neighborhood, the Seattle Times and the Seattle PI reported this month. 

The City has decided to place 13 to 20 pay stations in Fremont, along with other time-restricted and residential parking zones. 

Jessica Vets, the executive director of the Fremont Chamber of Commerce, believes the City's move towards paid parking will hurt small businesses and Seattle citizens.  "This is a tax that has not been passed by the voters, that the Seattle City Council and the mayor are imposing on businesses, on residents and on Seattle citizens," says Vets. 

It's hard to disagree with Ms. Vets.  A parking ticket by one visitor to a retail establishment can certainly have an effect on that visitor's shopping patterns, and the business.  Less business means less tax revenue for the City.  Will the City make up for it with revenue from extra parking tickets?  Feel free to comment below. 

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Police in several towns in King and Snohomish counties are toughening their approach to immigration (even legal immigration!) by arresting drivers that police suspect of being illegal, the Seattle Times reported. Take the case of Jose Luis Diaz: he was pulled over for speeding and detained by authorities for 8 days before he could present the proper paperwork to an immigration judge.  In fact, Mr. Diaz was released after he was able to show that his wife is a U.S. citizen and that he is in the process of obtaining legal status.  Of course, Mr. Diaz's arrest did not come before he lost a good job (and good wages). Other drivers who are going to pay parking tickets ended up being detained by immigration agents.  This is happening in places such as Pacific, Lynnwood, and Bothell. If motorists do not take care of their tickets, these same drivers will have a tough time renewing their drivers' licenses, working for American  businesses, and maintaining insurance. If you received a speeding or other traffic ticket and you are worried about your legal status, you can still fight your ticket without going to jail or being detained by immigration authorities.  Give me a call if you want help fighting your ticket.

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Although SpeedingTicketBlog does not venture too often onto the highways of nonmoving traffic tickets, readers should be aware that the City of Seattle Parking Enforcement Division issued citations in violation of the City of Seattle Municipal Code. If you parked on a legal holiday and you were wrongly issued a citation, you car might also have been impounded, and wrongly so. In response to a lawsuit filed last fall on behalf of drivers who were wrongly issued citations, the City of Seattle changed its parking rules. Â Still, the City might still owe hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages for the prior wrongful issuance of citations. The case is currently pending in King County Superior Court. For more information, read the Seattle PI's article here.

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