Provo hands booters a $500 notice

PROVO — Now the boot is on the other foot.

Drivers who felt they had nowhere to turn if their vehicles were booted or towed around Provo's apartment complexes now can seek $500 in court damages if they feel a parking-enforcement company is too aggressive.

The Provo City Council voted 5-2 Wednesday to change its ordinance, aimed at improving communication and reducing the antagonism between Utah Valley college students, landlords and the towers and booters hired by landlords to enforce parking.

Enough students feel strongly about it that a Utah Valley State College student is making a documentary.

"The fact it evokes so much emotion out of people in and of itself makes it interesting," said Spencer King, a theater major. "Most people react negatively when you ask them what they think when they hear the word 'booter.' Some react very negatively, and you even get hatred."

The emotional conflict isn't limited to Provo. It's also evident in Salt Lake City, which revisited its ordinance, and Logan, where a Utah State University student has sued the city claiming booting, which means that a device is locked onto a wheel, rendering the vehicle inoperable, is unconstitutional.

Provo's solution would have been unanimous but for an 11th-hour protest by a parking-enforcement company. The firm said the potential for a $500 award would motivate college students— or anybody who wants some quick cash, really — to take such companies to court, whether their claims were legitimate or not.

People could use the court option to seek a payday or revenge, forcing company employees to waste time in small-claims court, said Michael Lamont, owner of University Parking Enforcement.

Lamont nearly managed to persuade the council to knock down the potential penalty to $250.

Instead, students maintained the hammer of a steep penalty as part of a victory that also included a clearer definition of the rules, improved posting of parking restrictions and a requirement that companies leave a more detailed note when a vehicle is booted.

Landlords hire towing companies to place a boot on vehicles parked where they shouldn't be. The device immobilizes the vehicle without the owner's consent.

The USU student who filed a lawsuit, Quinn Millet, contends the practice violates the constitutional right to due process because property is essentially seized and the alleged violator fined without an opportunity to mount a defense.