Parking Scofflaws to Get the ‘Boot,’ Los Angeles Warns 95,000 Motorists

Clamping down, literally as well as figuratively, on traffic scofflaws, the City of Los Angeles on Wednesday began mailing notices to 95,000 motorists with five or more unpaid parking tickets, advising them to pay up or risk an encounter with the “Denver boot,” a device that immobilizes cars with steel clamps placed on their front tires.

“City forces, equipped with immobilizing devices, will greatly increase efforts to locate and seize vehicles with five or more parking citations,” the notices greet parking violators.

Starting April 1, the city plans to start locking the boots on cars owned by motorists with five or more unpaid parking tickets--even if the vehicles are parked legally at the time, city Parking Administrator Robert Yates said Wednesday. To get the device removed, a motorist will have to pay off old tickets, plus a $35 boot fee.

Announcing the mailings, Councilman Michael Woo, chairman of the City Council’s Transportation Committee, said, “I hope people will take the opportunity to clear their records now and avoid the inconvenience of having their automobile seized.”

For years, Los Angeles has had a handful of the boots, which are named after the city where they were first used. But the devices have been used only to lock cars in place until they can be towed to an impound yard where owners can reclaim their vehicles.

What is new is that the city plans to use more than 200 of the boots and to start leaving cars on the street, with the devices attached to them.

“It’s a little better for the citizen,” Yates said. “At least they’ll be able to find out where their car is.”

Yates said the city is owed $100 million by parking violators. The leading violator, a West Los Angeles man with 163 outstanding citations over a two-year period, owes $7,944, Yates said.