Draconian Tow and Trash Policy
Stephen Hoffman
Owner, Law Office of Stephen L. Hoffman LLC ● Personal Injury & Workers' Compensation Law
This policy is draconian and regressive. Love to see it go away.
Lawsuit challenges Chicago’s selling of impounded vehicles
Plaintiffs decry city’s disposal of cars over tickets
A truck towing two vehicles prepares to enter a city of Chicago auto pound on Wednesday. The city can sell or destroy an impounded vehicle after 21 days. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
By John Byrne
Chicago’s practice of selling cars impounded for unpaid parking tickets is unconstitutional, according to a new federal lawsuit that’s the latest attempt to curb the long-running practice.
Attorney Jacie Zolna wants the city to pay back thousands of people who’ve lost their cars because they couldn’t come up with hundreds of dollars in ticket costs and other fees to get them out of city impound lots. Often, the city sells the impounded cars to its towing company for pennies on the dollar, Zolna said.
“These vehicles were a part of no crime. They were parked legally,” Zolna said Wednesday at a news conference to announce the suit. “They weren’t posing a safety hazard to anyone. They were simply towed because the people who owned the vehicles couldn’t afford to pay the parking tickets.”
Joseph Walawski, a plaintiff in the suit, said his 2016 Nissan was booted by the city, then towed while it was legally parked in the Hermosa neighborhood in 2018 because he owed $500 for three parking tickets.
When he couldn’t come up with part of that money plus hundreds more in towing and impound fees, the city sold the car for $204 to its towing company, United Road Towing Inc., Walawski said.
He still owed more than $17,000 on the Nissan when it got towed, Walawski said.
“I had $20 in my pocket at the time. I couldn’t come up with the money the city wanted,” said Walawski, who added he had just started a new job as a pizza delivery driver when he lost the car and had to give up the job. “It crippled me. It left me in a bad state.
“They could have sold the car back to me for $204 and called it even,” he said.
Having a vehicle towed can get costly quick, depending on how much it weighs.
For vehicles that weigh less than 8,000 pounds, the tow fee is $150, along with a $20 daily storage fee the first five days that jumps to $35 per day afterward. The towing fee for heavier vehicles is $250, on top of a $60 daily storage fee for the first five days, which then increases to $100 per day.
The city can sell or destroy an impounded vehicle after 21 days, but vehicle owners can request a 15-day extension to pay the fines and fees, according to the city’s website.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has said she plans to reform the city’s system of fines and fees because they’re regressive and do the most harm to low-income residents.
“While we have not seen and therefore cannot comment on this suit, it’s important to note that the administration is actively working to evaluate the city’s complex impound systems to find ways to enhance them and ensure that residents aren’t losing their cars simply due to inability to pay,” mayoral spokeswoman Lauren Huffman said in a statement.
The lawsuit comes as the U.S. Supreme Court has set arguments this April in a separate case where a group of Chicagoans argue the city must return their impounded vehicles to them if they file bankruptcy.
Twitter @_johnbyrneLawsuit challenges Chicago’s selling of impounded vehicles
Plaintiffs decry city’s disposal of cars over tickets
A truck towing two vehicles prepares to enter a city of Chicago auto pound on Wednesday. The city can sell or destroy an impounded vehicle after 21 days. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
By John Byrne
Chicago’s practice of selling cars impounded for unpaid parking tickets is unconstitutional, according to a new federal lawsuit that’s the latest attempt to curb the long-running practice.
Attorney Jacie Zolna wants the city to pay back thousands of people who’ve lost their cars because they couldn’t come up with hundreds of dollars in ticket costs and other fees to get them out of city impound lots. Often, the city sells the impounded cars to its towing company for pennies on the dollar, Zolna said.
“These vehicles were a part of no crime. They were parked legally,” Zolna said Wednesday at a news conference to announce the suit. “They weren’t posing a safety hazard to anyone. They were simply towed because the people who owned the vehicles couldn’t afford to pay the parking tickets.”
Joseph Walawski, a plaintiff in the suit, said his 2016 Nissan was booted by the city, then towed while it was legally parked in the Hermosa neighborhood in 2018 because he owed $500 for three parking tickets.
When he couldn’t come up with part of that money plus hundreds more in towing and impound fees, the city sold the car for $204 to its towing company, United Road Towing Inc., Walawski said.
He still owed more than $17,000 on the Nissan when it got towed, Walawski said.
“I had $20 in my pocket at the time. I couldn’t come up with the money the city wanted,” said Walawski, who added he had just started a new job as a pizza delivery driver when he lost the car and had to give up the job. “It crippled me. It left me in a bad state.
“They could have sold the car back to me for $204 and called it even,” he said.
Having a vehicle towed can get costly quick, depending on how much it weighs.
For vehicles that weigh less than 8,000 pounds, the tow fee is $150, along with a $20 daily storage fee the first five days that jumps to $35 per day afterward. The towing fee for heavier vehicles is $250, on top of a $60 daily storage fee for the first five days, which then increases to $100 per day.
The city can sell or destroy an impounded vehicle after 21 days, but vehicle owners can request a 15-day extension to pay the fines and fees, according to the city’s website.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has said she plans to reform the city’s system of fines and fees because they’re regressive and do the most harm to low-income residents.
“While we have not seen and therefore cannot comment on this suit, it’s important to note that the administration is actively working to evaluate the city’s complex impound systems to find ways to enhance them and ensure that residents aren’t losing their cars simply due to inability to pay,” mayoral spokeswoman Lauren Huffman said in a statement.
The lawsuit comes as the U.S. Supreme Court has set arguments this April in a separate case where a group of Chicagoans argue the city must return their impounded vehicles to them if they file bankruptcy.
Twitter @_johnbyrne