- Operation Eye Sore - Hemet Police Target Abandoned Vehicles

Hemet, California –The Hemet Police Department is launching a new program designed to address inoperable vehicles left abandoned on city streets. Informally titled “Operation Eyesore,” the plan outlines a strategy to remove blight caused by inoperable, abandoned and unregistered vehicles.

Every week, staff from the department’s traffic bureau will direct their effort to locating abandoned vehicles within the city, and enforcing the various parking laws outlined in the Hemet Municipal Code, and the California Vehicle Code. The program will include issuing warning notices asking the owner to move their vehicle, issuing parking citations and the removal of vehicles which are clearly abandoned. Officers will systematically patrol all roadways within the City of Hemet and address each and every neighborhood. No increase in staffing or additional cost is associated with the program, only a refocus of effort by existing personnel.

Lieutenant Eric Dickson, who oversees the department’s traffic bureau, said “Abandoned vehicles are often unregistered, unsightly and covered in debris. They are not just an eyesore, but can take up valuable parking space in already crowded residential neighborhoods.”

Per the California Vehicle Code, It is unlawful to store a vehicle on the roadway for more than 72 hours, and all vehicles parked on the city streets must be currently registered. Any vehicle with registration expired for over six-months is subject to tow.