PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A Portland lawyer who successfully cited a police officer for parking his patrol car in a no-parking zone during lunch says the officer violated the rules again.

Attorney Eric Bryant says he spotted a patrol car parked in a "Government Vehicles Prohibited" zone alongside the downtown Justice Center last month and traced it to Officer Chad Stensgaard, who was fined $35 last spring.

Bryant says he also gathered enough evidence at the scene to cite Multnomah County Sheriff's Lt. David Rider for parking his vehicle in the same zone. Bryant has filed complaints against Stensgaard and Rider.

Sgt. Brian Schmautz of the Portland Police Bureau says a long-standing informal agreement police have with the city allows officers to park wherever needed while on duty. The agreement is expected to be put in writing.

Bryant, the lawyer, released this letter Tuesday explaining his actions:

To those who are interested:

Some reporters have seen the "Portland Mercury's" blog posting about my attempts to stop the practice of unlawful police parking that occurs regularly near the Justice Center and Central Precinct. I will be discussing the situation and answering questions today at 12:30 P.M. near the "Government Vehicles Prohibited" sign on SW Main between 2nd and 3rd.

When police officers intentionally violate the law, it does not set a good example for all of the taxpayers who try their best to obey the law. A responsible government holds its employees to the same high standards that it demands from the public. 

Let me be clear about one thing. These enforcement actions are not a war on the police department itself. The Portland Police Bureau employs talented and dedicated individuals who do not receive enough public praise for the work that they do. I mean that and have stories to back it up.

Only a small fraction of law enforcement officials habitually disregard the city's parking signs, but this practice has the approval of PPB leadership. There needs to be consistency between the law and the conduct of government. I hope that a combination of citizen enforcement and public pressure will motivate the city to implement changes.

I cited Officer Chadd Stensgaard in March because I did not believe that he had legal authority to disregard a No Parking sign, even if it was just for fifteen minutes or so while he was waiting for food. I was pleased to obtain a conviction for illegal parking, but I was disappointed at the finding of not guilty for illegally operating an emergency vehicle.

State law addresses the issue of when law enforcement officers are exempt from traffic and parking laws and when they are not. Emergency vehicle operators are exempt from traffic and parking laws when they are responding to an emergency situation or when they are pursuing someone suspected of violating the law. However, at all other times, they must follow the same laws as everyone else and are subject to citations if they fail to do so. The goal of this law is to preserve a significant degree of equality between regular drivers and emergency vehicle drivers.

 In September, I first noticed police cars parked in No Parking zones on SW Madison. It soon became apparent that this was a daily practice. The No Parking zone sits only a few feet from the space that appears to be reserved for Chief Sizer. I began wondering if she knew or cared about what was going on, especially after she was put on notice in July that illegally parked police cars are subject to citations in the State of Oregon. I twice spoke with Central Precinct Commander Mike Reese about officers parked in the No Parking zone and passenger loading zone.

As the practice continued, it became clear that the only way to change this pattern was to hold individuals accountable. Ask any police officer, one of the most effective ways to get people to obey the law is through concentrated enforcement efforts.

On November 19, 2008, at about 4:00 PM, I was downtown standing outside of Central Precinct when I gathered sufficient evidence to cite Officer Stensgaard for parking in a Government Vehicles Prohibited zone. About thirty minutes later, I gathered sufficient evidence to cite to Lieutenant David Rader of the Multnomah County Sherriff's Office for standing in the same zone. I spoke with both men that day, and those conversations will be part of the trials if there are any.  I decline to go into detail now.

Officers frequently disregard the No Parking zone on SW Madison and the 5-min/Driver Must Remain at Wheel zone on SW 2nd Avenue, which sits between the entrance and exit for the parking garage under the Justice Center/PPB headquarters. 

I encourage the media to tell a complete story of the forces at play in this situation. I have already mentioned state law, but it is important to discuss a few city ordinances, the role of the traffic engineer, the PPB Manual of Policy and Procedure, and perhaps most importantly, policies that appear to be a wink and a nod to illegal behavior by government officials. 

Chapter 16 of the Portland City Code addresses parking issues. This chapter includes laws stating that government vehicles may not park in spaces in which they are prohibited from parking. It includes a provision that defines the duties of the City Traffic Engineer and the "regulation standards" that must be used in designing a traffic and parking plan.

Portland's parking policymakers spent a lot of time crafting a plan in the best interests of the public and according to standard practices of traffic engineering. One example, the No Parking zone on SW Madison exists because the traffic lane narrows near SW 2nd. Drivers in the left lane of the one way street should not have to risk hitting a parked police car to the left side or a car in the lane to the right.

The PPB's Manual of Policy and Procedure has several provisions that apply to police parking during non-emergency situations:

POLICY (315.00) Members are required to conform to, and abide by, the rules and regulations of the Bureau, ordinances of the City and County, Federal laws and of the laws of all states. Members shall not commit any act, or fail to perform any act, that constitutes a violation of any of the rules, regulations, instruction, directives, or orders of the Bureau, whether stated in these directives or elsewhere.

Void Request of Parking Citations (Police Vehicles) (860.40) A request that the court dismiss a parking tag issued to a police vehicle by another party must be made by letter rather than the Void Request Form. a. It is the policy of the Bureau that members will be subject to parking regulations the same as any citizen. However, the emergency nature of law enforcement will occasionally require that Bureau vehicles will be parked in violation. If a parking citation results, it may be turned in with a letter addressed to the Court Administrator requesting dismissal. b. Requests for dismissal of these parking citations must be on letterhead stationery, have an adequate explanation of the official business being conducted, and be approved by the individual's RU manager.

PROCEDURE (1230.20) For purposes of this directive, all Bureau owned, marked, unmarked, staff or utility vehicle are considered E-plated and subject to the parking ordinance. Members will not park Bureau vehicles adjacent to the Elk Fountain on SW Main, 3rd to 4th. Violators will be towed. The Police Only parking zones adjacent to the Multnomah County Courthouse are for marked patrol units only. Drivers of marked and unmarked units assigned to the Justice Center are to use assigned parking spaces when attending court and when conducting business at City Hall, the Portland Building and the Justice Center. Vehicles with assigned spaces at the SW 1st and Jefferson garage will not use on-street parking around the courthouse nor on SW 2nd, Jefferson to Madison. The marked spaces in the basement of 1st and Jefferson are for police vehicles only. Any private cars parked in these spaces will be towed. As a last resort, marked units can be parked on the parking lot on SW 2nd, Main to Madison, and validation obtained through Fiscal Services Division or the member can receive reimbursement through his/her RU.

Employees driving a vehicle that receives a citation as a result of a violation of the No Government Vehicle zones are responsible for paying those citations and may be subject to disciplinary action.

I do not have any information about relevant policies of Multnomah County Sheriff's Office. I had not noticed any person from MSCO violating the law around the Justice Center until Lt. Rader on November 19.

While the traffic engineer, Portland Police Bureau, the city, and state have all enacted rules that affect police parking, nobody in the city actually enforces such rules. I have heard that the PPB has been told by other city officials that they need to stop the illegal parking on SW Madison.  Two city employees have also told me that parking enforcement officers have a policy against ticketing illegally parked police cars. I encourage the media to look into this. Should the government be exempting government officials from obeying laws passed by the government? I have seen parking citations on the windshields of illegally-parked law enforcement vehicles in Oregon City. This should begin occurring in Portland. 

Each day, thousands of downtown drivers take care to obey posted parking signs. It is time to expect the same from police officers.

Laws apply to governments too.

Thanks,
Eric Bryant