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Chehalis parking tickets out of step with Washington courts

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The city of Chehalis discovered it’s been assessing a delinquent penalty after only 72 hours on parking tickets even though a state court rule say cities must allow recipients a 15 day grace period.

The fee for not responding timely to a parking infraction is $25.

Chehalis Municipal Court Administrator Becky Fox said a review in July of legislative changes and the city’s ordinance is what brought it to her attention.

Fox said since learning the city was out of compliance, they have not charged people the delinquent fee until the appropriate amount of time has passed.

The issue was brought before the city council last night, which voted to revise its ordinance to bring it into line with what is required. Fox said they have an approved and updated form now, ready to use.

A standard parking ticket is $5, according to Fox. Certain types are more, she said.

The Washington State Court Rules Infraction Rules for Courts of Limited Jurisdiction provide that a person served with a notice of infraction must respond within 15 days of the date the notice is personally served or, if the notice is served by mail, then within 18 days of the date the notice is mailed.

Fox said she doesn’t know how much the city has collected from those who were penalized even though they responded within 15 days. She said she’s not certain how long the city has been out of compliance.

There are no plans to reimburse anyone.

The city contends its local ordinance trumped state court rules and there was nothing incorrect or illegal about the way it imposed charges or penalties.

The memo to the city council about the issue, from Fox and Police Chief Glenn Schaffer, reported the parking infraction form being used was also out of compliance because it had not been reviewed by the state’s Administrative Office of the Courts.

The new ordinance passed unanimously last night by the city council. The council suspended the usual requirement for two readings – two subsequent votes – on the measure.

The Washington State Court Rules’ IRLJ govern the procedure in courts of limited jurisdiction – municipal courts and district courts – for all cases involving infractions. Infractions are noncriminal violations of law defined by statute.

The newly adopted city ordinance also added a prohibition against one vehicle taking up two parking spaces.