Disabled woman parked at Houston hospital for cancer scan gets $500 ticket
HOUSTON - Shortly after our interview, Cheri Stine got an email from the City of Houston stating her parking ticket had been dismissed, but she still wants to warn other disabled drivers, so the same thing doesn't happen to them.
"M.D. Anderson told me I was going to die, and they hope to give me five years to live," Stine said. "That was 26 months ago."
Stine has a rare form of breast cancer. While it's currently in remission, she's going through cancer scans to see if it's back.
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"I'm always at doctor appointments because I have the rarest most aggressive breast cancer and both M.D. Anderson and Methodist are taking care of me," she said.
While parked in a handicapped parking spot at Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital, Cheri was ticketed by the City of Houston for not having her placard punched.
"Here's my placard. This is what I was ticketed: $500 dollars for it's not punched here and here, which was the county employee's responsibility to punch," Cheri said. "I was shaking. I almost cried, I couldn't even believe it."
In a statement, the City of Houston tells us, "The Texas Department of Transportation requires a valid disabled parking placard to have the expiration date written and the corresponding holes punched to match the date. Regrettably, the growth of fraudulent placards requires these measures to be strictly enforced."
"My concern is other people who are worse off than me. They are going to get a $500 ticket possibly because they may have the same problem. I did no punches on their placards," Cheri said.
ParkHouston also shared this statement about the citation:
"The City takes enforcement measures to ensure the availability of ADA spaces for those who have the right and need to use those spaces. The Texas Department of Transportation requires a valid disabled parking placard to have the expiration date written and the corresponding holes punched to match that date. Regrettably, the growth of fraudulent placards requires these measures to be strictly enforced. This citation was issued for a placard that did not have the required holes punched, which should have been done when it was issued by Harris County.
We understand Ms. Stine’s frustration and have provided her with information about how to contest the citation and potentially have it dismissed upon verification as the placard owner. The City is not looking to punish people who have the right to use accessible parking spaces. Our goal is to keep the parking spaces available for those who have valid credentials and have been granted ADA parking rights."