DA uses own parking ticket to probe city practices, calls end run around courts unconstitutional
Unhappy with the way the local municipal judge handled parking tickets, the city of Easton, Pennsylvania, simply started sending its tickets to collection agencies, instead.
There’s a problem with that approach, however, Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli ltells the Express-Times: It’s unconstitutional because of a lack of notice.
“In my opinion, that’s seizure of property without due process,” Morganelli said, explaining that the city’s notices threaten to impound or immobilize vehicles but don’t mention appeal options.
“The violators are not given an opportunity to present their defense before a neutral, detached judicial officer,” Morganelli wrote in a Friday letter to the city’s major and police chief.
Mayor Sal Panto said the city is now working on new language to include in its notices to address the issue raised by Morganelli. “We appreciate John bringing it to our attention,” he told the newspaper.
Morganelli joked that he went undercover to probe the parking ticket situation in the city after being cited himself in December when a meter near a restaurant at which he was dining was frozen and would not accept money.
Having heard rumors about a lack of court involvement, he delayed sending in his payment to see what would happen. Instead of receiving a standard notice to appear in court he got a collection letter telling him to pay up or risk having his vehicle towed.
“I engaged in this on purpose. I assumed they were doing everything properly,” the DA said.
