A Parking ticket from school security? should i pay?

Question

I've received a $100 parking ticekt from university secuirty. it is NOT from the city. it is from school. and i do not attend this school. should i still pay for it? i heard i do not have to pay for the ticket because by the law, no other than the city is allowed to issue a parking ticket and collect fines.

actually i forgot to mention that it's been 6 months. alll they do is send me a bill every month with $15 fee added to the original ticket. i am sure it is not from the city. tickets from cities are yellow. but this one is white.

Answer 1

I got a ticket ($55.) once from a hospital security back in 1998. I never paid the fine and it hasnt come to haunt me as of to date.

Answer 2

Fact: Public Universities are State Property
Fact: University Police are Special Units of the State Police (Which is why in some states they are regulated to carry guns.).
Fact: When the University Police issue you a ticket it will list the STATE regulation that you broke (just look on the ticket).
Fact: Security Officers on a Private University or College Campus cannot be called Police. That alone should be a strong indication as to whether or not the ticket is enforceable

Bottom line...if it was a community college or state university then you had better pay up...if not then don't sweat it.

Answer 3

University is considered state property in some states. Parking enforcement powers may be extended to campus police based on the laws of your individual state.

In short, I would definitely do some research before blowing this one off. This could move to state or (worse yet) collections which could really screw with your credit rating. Unless of course, you don't care about those sorts of things.

But I must tell you, there's nothing quite like a lien against something you own(ed) to make your day when you try to buy a house!

Answer 4

That depends.
Some private colleges have a contract with the city which allows their security guards to issue parking summonses on their property, and they can be enforced just like any city-issued tickets on public roads/lots. Private colleges without such a contract can only enforce them on their own students by adding penalty fees to their tuition, and can withhold any college credits and diplomas until it's payed.

If it's a state-owned community college, then all it's roads and parking areas are publically-owned and any ticket issued there is just as enforceable as if you got it out on the street. Just call the county or city clerk's office to check if your ticket falls under public jurisdiction.

Answer 5

As you may have noticed from the answers, this issue varies from state to state, college to college.
In CA, the University of CA has its own state authorized police department. The CA State Universities all have their own state authorized police departments. There are also many community colleges with their own state authorized police departments. Parking officers, as part of the campus police departments, issue parking citations. These citations have the same repercussions as a parking citation issued by city police or parking officers. The repercussions include you cannot register your car which leads to driving a car with expired registration which leads to higher & higher fees & possible eventual seizure until all fines are paid.
It would be a good idea for you to learn if your citation was issued by a security department or a police department.

Answer 6

If it is from a police officer, you do.

They probably thought you were a student. The student handbook probably says they have 100 dollar parking tickets for parking without a student sticker or parking at a place designated for something else.

100 is pretty steep. My school only charge like 8 dollars. You may have to take the ticket to the police station and see if it is legit.

Answer 7

Get a copy of the law. If you don't have to pay it according to the law, show it to the university that issued the ticket.

Answer 8

I had a boss who refused to pay the parking tickets to the university he attended. He never received his diploma because of this.

Answer 9

I'd wait on it if I were you. My hubby got one from a school and didn't pay it, he waited until the city contacted him and then he paid. It wasn't any more expensive than when it came from the school, but some schools turn them into the city and some schools don't.

Our university didn't turn them over, the worst they did was keep you from registering for classes next semster. But from our experience with Chapel Hill, they did. So I think that some schools do and some schools don't.

So, I'd wait and see - and keep your fingers crossed.

Answer 10

some schools have exchange agreements with the local police in that the campus cops have the power to cite and arrest. if this is the case, pay up.
many universities just have a patrol with no more authority than any other citizen... schools cannot pass laws.