Last week, I was a guest at 64 Ingraham Blvd in Hempstead Village. On the very first day I arrived, I asked the host directly about the parking rules. She told me the only day I could not park there was Thursday from 8pm to 12pm. Simple, clear, and straightforward. So I parked legally-or so I thought.
The next day, Wednesday, I walked out to my car and found not one ticket, not two tickets, but three tickets issued at the exact same time. Three. In this economy, that level of punishment is beyond excessive. It feels predatory.
I am a law-abiding citizen and a travel clinician who came here from Rockland County to work. I do not cause trouble, I do not break rules, and I do not intentionally ignore regulations. My car currently does not have inspection because I have a documented reason. There is paperwork inside the vehicle explaining why it did not pass and that I am actively in the process of getting it fixed.
I tinted my car because, after long shifts, I am sometimes too exhausted to drive home safely, and I sleep in my car for protection and rest. I have never been ticketed or even warned for any of this anywhere else-not in Rockland, not in New Jersey, not in Connecticut, and not at any of the hospitals where I have worked throughout the region.
But the moment I arrived in Hempstead Village, suddenly I was treated like a criminal. Three tickets at once. No warning. No courtesy. No proportionality.
It feels less like public safety enforcement and more like revenue extraction-a village balancing its budget on the backs of working people who are simply trying to do their jobs and rest safely.
I do not deserve this kind of punishment, and neither does anyone else.
No comments:
Post a Comment