Right on! Sheriff Gualtieri this is a good move for our community.

The people who drive vehicles with handicapped stickers or placards or license plates should be able to park in handicapped spots ONLY IF they are the disabled or a passenger. Countless times I've seen drivers in vehicles with those stickers, etc., take up one of those spots, get out of their cars, and walk away ... obviously not handicapped and without a truly disabled person either waiting in the car (in which case using a handicapped place is not at all necessary) or accompanying the driver. This serious abuse is astonishing.

@ Barb re:"I've seen drivers in vehicles with those stickers, etc., take up one of those spots, get out of their cars, and walk away ... obviously not handicapped ".
YOUR comment is exactly why private citizens should NOT be allowed to issue tickets. I am disabled and have been for 10 years. When I leave my car walking I look pretty much like anyone else. Disabilities take many forms; do NOT jump to incorrect conclusions about that person... Handicapped people can have respiratory problems, visual or cognitive issues, seizures, etc. It's quite obvious you do not consider these to be disabilities. Until you graduate medical school, kindly leave the definition of "disabled" to the professionals, thank you!

I know that all law enforcement agencies are over-burdened, but this is something that needs to be addressed as there is "NO" enforcement whatsoever. Citizen groups are one way to help but only successful if the citizens do this enforcement every day as long as the business is open. Otherwise, we truly have accomplished nothing. Why can't the business be made responsible for policing this issue? I am handicapped with mobility issues and find it frustrating and painful to have to find a parking space near the back of a parking lot because all handicapped spaces are filled. If they were filled by handicapped customers I wouldn't be saying anything. But, I have seen so many people park and you know the person getting out of the vehicle is in no way handicapped. I was even denied a space when a large van with handicapped tags pulled into a space I was vieing for. No biggy, except what jumped out of the van were three teenagers in mini shorts. Boy was I angry. When I said something to them they just laughed and entered the store.

There will be ADA law suits even with the ADA committee's recommendation. There is NO way to say where someone is disabled or not.
I agree that there are egregious violations of handicapped parking. However, the Sheriff department is sending our citizens out to patrol an issue the Sheriff's Office does not want to deal with themselves due to legal ramifications. Having a SO deputy in court is costly. The Citizen volunteers better be able to sit in court and be able to back up an issue that mass transportation is unable to resolve with out a law suit.

The issuance of the placards is where the investigation should start.

The handicapped placard and tags are issued to a specific person. If the citations are based solely on this information, I back you whole heartily. The citizen volunteers are then in direct contact with the violator. A job that should be taken care of by trained paid SO deputies.

Volunteers...GOOD LUCK! You are going to need it!

This has been an education for me. I thought that the parking places were for people in walkers in dire need of a cane, or were in a wheel chair.

Why would anyone else need a sticker?

In Florida, to use a designated handicapped parking stall, one must register for a Florida DHSMV Disabled Parking Permit.

Here is a link to the requirements: http://www.flhsmv.gov/dmv/disabled_pkg.html

If a permit is issued, you are issued a placard that must be hung from the rearview mirror while parked in the designated stall.

Here is a link to the "Do's and Don'ts" of using the placards:
http://www.flhsmv.gov/dmv/dosanddonts.html

There is also a misuse of the placards, I see people driving with it hanging from the rearview mirror, when the card states to display it only when parked. I believe the little girl who died from a hit and run accident about 6 years ago in front of the Don Ceasar on St Pete Beach would be alive today if that driver who was described by those who witnessed the accident, 'as a woman driver who could bearly see over the steering wheel with a handicap placard hanging on the rearview mirror', followed that rule. Those people who disregard that should be ticketed, as it interfers with their line of vision, and those who are older with placards already have a limited field of vision. Enforce the laws we have now.

My dad has one of those handicap plates. To look at him, you would never be able to see that he needs it - I really think having private citizens do the enforcing is a recipe for disaster. When I or my mother drives his car, if he is not in it, we do not abuse the system and we park in a regular space. I am so grateful that he is able to get preferential parking since it allows him to go places that otherwise he simply could not. I too have seen abuses where cars are parked that do not even have a sticker. However, after his illness, I no longer make judgments, EVEN if I see teenagers getting out of the car that look healthy on the OUTSIDE - you never ever ever ever know what is happening on the inside unless you are a medical doctor - I, for one, am not. Leave the enforcements to the law enforcement professionals, and the handicap designation to the medical professionals - not volunteer citizens, regardless of how "trained" they are. These are the issues that make me afraid that those plates might one day go away and for my dad that would be a tragedy. I will tolerate, through gritted teeth no less, the dirt-bags who illegaly use these spots and let law enforcement do the job they are trained to do. Karma will step in and pay those back who behave badly when they are not caught by law trained enforcement professionals.

I agree with Ceclia that handicap people should not have the right or responsibility of issuing parking tickets. There are times when my ankle bothers me (due to 16 screws & 2 metal plates holding it together), I am not handicapped but have trouble walking at times and would not ever park illegally because I know just how limiting it is to be in a cast for one year & with the uncertainty that you may never walk again at age 23 - you never look at life the same way. Reiterating Celcila's sentiments - leave the healthcare professionals to determine who is handicapped, leave law enforcement to those who are trained to do so - everyone who violates the parking in handicapped spots should be sentenced to minimum one day totally in a wheelchair - to get the perspective of those who need the convenience & necessity of parking close.

I'm sorry, but I think this is ridiculous. Law enforcement is for officers of the law. If there is a sticker and the car is in a designated spot a ticket cannot be issued. The real problem here is there really aren't enough handicap spots.

Did anyone ever see the guy with the Handicap license plates on his motorcycle? Next time I see him I'll take a picture.

This is for physically handicapped individuals not mentally handicapped. The people I see using those spots are fit.