Bruce Dickstein was angry and puzzled. The Brooklyn man had parked at what he thought was a legal space, but got a ticket anyway. And when he fought it, it seemed that no one would listen to him.
Dickstein got the $165 ticket last December, and he just can't figure out why.
"Because looking at the situation, it's my opinion," he said. "It is not a pedestrian ramp. It is a curb cut that goes nowhere."
The ticket says Bruce was blocking a pedestrian ramp. But the cut in the curb and the ramp to the sidewalk end at a wall. So Bruce appealed the ticket and showed his evidence to the judge.
"I had a whole bunch of pictures," Dickstein said. "He took a look and he said, 'Well, looks like a ramp, it must be for the disabled, guilty, pay the fine.'"
Bruce got drawings from the buildings department, which showed that originally, the curb cut went to a driveway which is no longer there. And he got copies of an inspection that showed the driveway goes nowhere. So he went back to court and appealed again. And again he lost. The judge said his pictures were "not persuasive."
So Bruce called for Seven On His Side. We contacted the buildings department and got a copy of the original inspection report. And when we showed it to the city finance department, which levies parking fines, they agreed. Bruce was right. And he's getting his $165 back.
"Thank you Channel Seven, Eyewitness News," he said. "Without your help, I'd be up a creek."
The buildings department issued the violation for the illegal curb cut after Bruce got his ticket, so he didn't have that information when he went to court. After the finance department got proof the curb cut was illegal, they reversed the ticket.
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WEB PRODUCED BY: Bill King
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