The Brownsville Police Department is issuing warnings to owners of abandoned vehicles left on city roadways.
The issuing of the warnings is in the department’s efforts in helping keep Brownsville a safer, cleaner and organized city.
The initiative started after the city began receiving telephone calls from concerned residents regarding abandoned vehicles left on city streets, said Investigator Martin Sandoval, Brownsville PD’s spokesman.
“Over the course of the year, we received a lot of calls about abandoned vehicles, so we decided to get with the city and the city reached out to us…we decide to let’s go out and let’s try to educate the people on why it’s bad to have these vehicles abandoned on the side of the streets,” Sandoval said.
The goal of the Brownsville PD right now is “education not citation,” Sandoval said. However, the handing out of citations may be added at a later date should vehicle owners not heed the warnings that are being handed out.
“If they do not comply with that then of course the citation will come into play after that,” he said.
Brownsville PD Sec. 98-162 of the city’s ordinance code pertains to impoundment of standing or parked vehicles.
Any vehicle which shall be or remain standing or parked upon any public street, avenue, way, alley or other public place may be removed by or upon order of the chief of police and placed in storage in a privately operated garage or other place designated or maintained by the city, under the following circumstances:
>> When any city police officer has reasonable grounds to believe that any vehicle has been abandoned
>> When a vehicle is so disabled that its normal operation is impossible or impractical and the person in charge of the vehicle is incapacitated because of physical injury or other causes to such an extent as to be unable to provide for its removal or custody or cannot be found or is not in the immediate vicinity of such vehicle
>> When any such vehicle is illegally parked so as to block the entrance to any private driveway and it is impracticable to move such vehicle from in front of the driveway to any other point on the highway
>> When any vehicle lacking the display of current registration and inspection tags (when applicable) in a lawfully acceptable manner has been parked or placed upon any public street or alley.
Police urge residents to report abandoned vehicles to the City of Brownsville’s website at www.brownsvilletx.gov/863/546-HELP-Support-Center and file the report online.
