‘Nothing to do with safety,’ fumes driver fined by HOA – it has no power to enforce rules, but his van made him ‘target’ | 16S1KSG | 2024-04-28 12:08:01
'Nothing to do with safety,' fumes driver fined by HOA – it has no power to enforce rules, but his van made him 'target' | 16S1KSG | 2024-04-28 12:08:01
PRIVATE security guards for an HOA have been caught using flashing lights and sirens, and even writing traffic citations.
A tenured police officer said he would be arrested if he'd done the same.
ABC affiliate WSB-TV journalist Jodie Fleischer has caught private security guards employed by an HOA in Forsyth County, Georgia using flashing lights and sirens to pull people over and issue tickets.
After consulting a lawyer, Fleischer drove through the gated St. Marlo community, drove under the speed limit, and passed through a stop sign to prompt security to pull her over.
On camera, she caught the security guard pulling her over and citing her with a $100 ticket payable to the subdivision's HOA.
T.J. Ward, a resident, has been a police officer for 40 years.
He told the outlet that impersonating officers using lights and sirens is illegal.
"If I was to stop a motor vehicle with lights in my car, I would be on my way to jail," said Ward.
"A private individual can't make a traffic stop and security officers are private individuals. The only person that can stop a motor vehicle is a law enforcement officer."
A few years ago, Ward was pulled over by a security guard, which pushed him to confront his HOA.
They said his stopping for the security patrol was part of his agreement.
"The decision by individuals to stop for security personnel is purely voluntary, given their understanding of homeowner responsibility to comply with all rules promulgated by the association," read their reply.
<!-- End of Brightcove Player --> Chip Terrel, owner of a pest control company whose company frequents the neighborhood, was stopped and issued a $50 ticket after he didn't stop at a sudden stop sign.
"If you don't come to that head-jerking stop, they are coming out and trying to write you a ticket," he said.
"I think it has nothing to do with safety. It's a money maker, and they know it."
He thinks his business makes him a target, as he says drivers for his company are regularly stopped and ticketed.
"They are taking advantage of people that can't defend themselves. There's no legal system here. You pay the ticket or your company doesn't work in here anymore," he said.
<!--googleoff: all--> <blockquote class="article__quote"> </blockquote> <!--googleon: all--> However, WSB-TV cameras caught his driver's trucks rolling through stop signs, prompting security to pull them over and cite them.
Tom Batolozzi, an HOA lawyer, said his business doesn't make him a target – breaking the rules does.
An HOA can enforce its rules how it sees fit – even if it means a pesky traffic ticket.
"I don't know that they're necessarily targeting anybody," he said.
"If they see a stop sign, they should just stop."
Bob Barr, a former attorney and constitutional law professor, said that security guards acting as police officers seems illegal.
"I think it's absurd," he said.
"It certainly seems to run afoul of state laws."
Barr has published columns on battling HOAs before, saying that most residents don't want the trouble of fighting in court, or they mistake the security guards for legitimate police officers.
Attorney Ken Poris fought a traffic ticket in Chicago after he mistook private security guards' flashing lights for an ambulance.
<p class="article__content--intro"> One in five Americans live in an area with a Homeowners' Association - or HOA. But what exactly is it that they do? </p> </div> </div> "I pulled over thinking I was yielding to an emergency vehicle," he said.
Poris fought the ticket with the Court of Appeals, who approved the appeal, saying that security guards do not have the power to act as police.
"The security officers are without legal authority to stop and detain drivers for violating association rules," wrote the court.
However, in Fleischer's case back in Georgia, she was told that she would not be allowed back into the community if the ticket was not paid.
Bartolozzi said that there isn't a criminal penalty for not paying the fines issued by HOA security, but the association does have the authority to put a lien on someone's property for not paying.
If visitors are cited, homeowners could be responsible for their violations, too.
Fleischer reported that several law enforcement agencies were "outraged" by the security guards, saying that traffic stops are the most dangerous part of their job.
More >> https://ift.tt/LFoAU2W Source: MAG NEWS
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