The fine should be $500 -- THAT would make these liars think twice. Some common decency should prevail -- if you don't have a handicap, or you aren't transporting a handicap, then don't use the space reserved for those with handicaps.

I see people at the post office in downtown Baltimore using the handicap spaces, displaying either a tag or placard, and walking perfectly fine into the post office. They themselves aren't the handicapped person, nor is there anyone else in the vehicle.

I once asked someone who did this how they could live with themself for stealing a space from a needy person, and they replied, "I'm not stealing; I'm freeing up more spaces for people like you who aren't handicapped." I was stunned -- they didn't see anything morally wrong with using the handicap space when they aren't the person to whom the placard or tag was issued.

What I've noticed walking around downtown is that if you display your handicap tag, apparently you're entitled for free parking anywhere an EZ Park meter is located. I've never seen a car with a handicap decal that had a receipt on the dashboard. This is certainly against policy, which says that handicap tags are only entitled for double the amount of time allowed on the meter (ex. 4 hours on the max 2 hour meter), not free parking!

No, the fine should be the vehicle with the tag is seized, sold at auction, the registration and tags surrendered to the state, and driver prohibited from registering a vehicle in the state of Maryland for 365 days.

These morons and their enablers need to feel the pain in the absolute worst way.

I once saw a wonderful sign in France that said, loosely translated, "If you want my parking space take the handicap that goes with it."

In Massachusetts if you are caught using a HP tag that is not yours, you are fined minimum $100 to a maximum $300 for the parking violation, then you are fined $500 for using the HP tag fraudulently and you lose your license for 30 days! This should be the law across the country, no questions asked!

All fine and good but keep in mind the handicap is not always obvious. I worked with someone waiting for a kidney transplant that had a handicapped pass.

I'm happy that some action is being taken on this front. The sad part is, unless it is routinely enforced it doesn't matter.

After all, when was the last time you saw a vehicle being ticketed for not letting a pedestrian have the right away in a cross walk. I'm pretty sure for most of us the answer is never. Heck, if one even stops at a cross walk to let someone legally cross the car behind you turns into the HULK, gets green, and starts honking and trying to ram into your bumper.

@The Commuter:I hope you're not being mean & just haven't realized that getting to an EZ Park dispenser can mean up to a half block extra journey ...one way.

This may not seem like much to you, but it sure is for me. After I got a ticket for being unable to travel that extra distance to pay for the first two hrs, I had to quit going downtown for some very useful services.

When the regular meters were used, I planned ahead & came equipped with quarters and could pay for the first two hrs right on the spot & did so.

Let me also add that getting up on over those curbs with a wheelchair can be challenging to say the least. One has to either go to the other end of the block for an accessible curb or use a walker or cane which adds to effort and instabilty.

Maybe you were one of the kind souls who helped me up when I fell, face down in the gutter, trying to get up on the sidewalk.

Good job HCPD! Keep doing it. There are far more who deprive the genuinely handicapped of parking by use of a relative's placard than people who park in these spaces without placards. I hope improper use of the placard results in it being taken away.

In the almost 7 yrs I've had a handicap card, I've been asked for proof it was mine exactly once.I was delighted & thanked the AAPD officer.

Reading the above article though, I can see why the police don't enforce it more often- it's not very profitable.

Take the 12 offenders & multiply by the $130 fine = $1560. How many officers & MVA personnel were used & for how long? Remember it said they were at several different locations.

A wild guess is that the manpower costs must have exceeded the fines by a significant amount.

So...what about this proposal: train, deputize, do whatever needed to the people this impacts most- the holders of handicap parking plates & placards- and call them meter men/maids, parking enforement personnel, MVA flunkies, whatever.

I'm not able to do much but I can sit in a chair for two hrs and ask for parking permits. It might be productive to show these thoughtless people who they are hurting by their inconsiderate actions.

I, personally, would also be thrilled to earn even minimum wage or a small cut of the ticket amount to supplement my meagre SS Disability by a few bucks with a job I was able to do. NOTE: This paragraph has been a shameless plug.

So there you have it- a motivated cheap workforce, more frequent enforcement against a selfish act, restoring "pride by being productive" to members of the disabled community while helping them monetarily and saving the taxpayers money!

I am a handicap permit holder and I have lost count on how many times I have been critized for NOT USING THE HANDICAP parking spot. Yes, this happens several times a year. I do use my handicap holder - when I am out of breath or extremely tired or if I am sick. I usually park at the edge of the parking lot so I get my exercise and burn off my sugar. However, there is a down side to having a handicap tag.