I was ticketed for parking in a fire route. The fire route was in a mall parking lot. My sis had stopped the car, engine still running and ran out to the bank machine less than 10 yards away. I was in the van getting snacks for the screaming children inside. By the time I gave everyone a snack my sis was back, I moved to the passenger seat. We drove off, no more than a couple of minutes had passed and there was a ticket for $250 for parking in fire route under my wiper. Went straight to fight in court. I am being told that stopping even if I'm in the van, engine on, I am still parked.

Any advice or words of help.

Was the van transmission shifter at the 'P' position? Not that it matters since you're at a full stop blocking the fire route. He/She could have simply knocked on the window and asked you to move, but I guess he wanted his ticket count to go up.

I'm sure the by-law enforcer was still standing there with a stop watch too.

File for a court date and hope you don't get a date set or ask for a lower fine if you do. No points at least.

I know it seems small scale to you. However you park there for a couple of minutes and the next car parks there for a couple of minutes, so on and so on. It can easily add up to someone parking there for half a day in total.

Quite honestly if I can drive around for a minute or two and find a spot to park to use the bank machine then so can you. No offense to you specifically but it all comes down to being lazy.

As to the officer knocking on the window and telling you to move. He/She shouldn't have to. The signs already tell you not to park there, thats the warning. If you choose to park there, you deserve a ticket.

Parking infraction wouldn't result in demerit points, unless, of course, you were charged with "disobey sign"... but that wasn't the case.