Removing a Parking Boot

Hello, my name is Roger Harris.

The reason I chose to write this today is because I have been fighting the parking system for quite a while, and I finally lost the war.

This is my story.

I drive my car to school, and as you all might know, it is impossible to find parking in any NMSU parking lot. You still need to pay $46.00 to the parking department for a permit.

I am an officer for a student organization, so I also need to park close to Corbett Center at night to unload my equipment. So I received a couple of parking citations throughout the year.

It wasn’t until the last time I was driving late to class…
I had to park near my building, but the only spot open was in the lot with the sign that says “staff only.”
I decided to risk it, because my professor had a strict rule about showing up late to class and getting dropped out of the class. It was only an hour class, so I also thought it would be a pretty quick park and go.

When I came out, I had the surprise of a lifetime. There was a “Denver Boot” holding the driver’s side front tire from rotating and allowing me to leave. I couldn’t believe it. How could I, a hardworking, good grade, good hearted student/citizen get such a device on my vehicle. I read the warning sign on the driver’s window. It stated: “Do not attempt to move this vehicle for it can result in serious damage to your car or injury to yourself.” It also stated the contact information to remove the boot. However, there was a $75 boot removal fee, as well as a $35 citation, plus I had to pay all 4 citations before they can remove the boot. All in all it added to about $300 in fees before they can remove the boot. With no job, no money, and no credit, I had to do what any American would do. I tried to take off the boot. Before I give the details of the removal, I just have to say that I failed at it. So I decided to talk to the parking department to see if I could contest it.

I tried everything. I asked if I could do community service, payments, court, you name it. They pretty much said that at this point, I would need to pay in full before they can take the boot off. They also mentioned that they found tampering marks on the boot. So they charged extra fees on top of that. They mentioned if It showed tampering again, it will be automatically towed. We had a minimum amount of time too before they would tow it as well. I decided that it would be now or never.

So I brought all the tools necessary to remove this :”Denver Boot.”
A Sledgehammer
A Crowbar
A Lift
A Cross

Here’s how I did it.
I deflated the tire to allow the outer side of the boot to be moved in front of the tire. This was the hardest part, since it made a lot of noise, and the deflating took a lot of time. Once that is taken care of though, you are almost home. Depending of your car and how strong and stable your CV joint is, then you can just wiggle your wheels and drive forward. This should pop open it off. If it doesn’t then you have to remove the tire. Use the crow bar and the sledgehammer to bend the boot into a place where it is easier to access the middle of the tire to remove it. Once you take it off, if the boot doesn’t come off, it is probably attached to your disk, then you just need to pull the wheel and boot together in the direction opposite where it is hanging on to. It should magically and finally pop off.

The cops showed up to the address that was registered in the license plate, but I haven’t been found yet. So wish me luck.

I wanted to let everyone know about this story to inspire people to fight the unfair parking system. If everyone parked everywhere they wanted to, the law would have no chance at all against all of us. We need to unite.
I hope I have inspired a couple of you, and helped those who thought they would have to pay, and there was nothing else they could do.

God bless, and take care.

Reference:

• www.associatedcontent.com/article/279786/how_to_remove_a_parking_boot.html?cat=27