This has gotten long because I fell victim to my Stream of Consciousness and I apologize in advance.
The Problem is not whether the Police know the code or not; it’s do they understand the code. There is a big difference between repairing a vehicle that broke down and only needs a small repair and putting the vehicle on the street and doing an oil change, brake job, change out the shock absorbers, new water pump, etc… all which require some sort of sundry equipment, jacks, spill pans, ramps, etc…
You’ve run out of gas, your engine over heated and you only need some time for it to cool down before adding coolant, your battery died and you cannot start it without a new battery are all good examples of “quick fixes.” Putting in a new alternator or power steering unit is not, but some folks think it is and this is where the fuzzy line of what you can do and what cannot do comes in and the Police do not want to be the judge of this and will probably default to “no, you can’t…”
When I was stationed at Davis Monthan AFB, Tucson, AZ. In the late 1990’s, we rented a house in a subdivision that had the most outrageous, overbearing, far-reaching, and downright outlandish HOA Rules. But we rented the house because it was owned by another military couple who wanted it back in 3 to 5 years so they wanted a military person who did not plan to “homestead” so they offered us the place at a fantastically low rent. We would never have bought there, but renting for the two-years we intended to stay was OK.
The Subdivision had a 150 plus page booklet on the Home Owner’s Association (HOA), which we affectionately called the “Home Ass…” They had several appointed “enforcers” that marched around the subdivision each day to enforce the rules. We called these enforcers “Home Ass Nazis” and one in particular checked to make sure that your vehicle did not block the sidewalk. He did this by carrying a Plum-bob on a string and if he suspected you “Blocked” the sidewalk, he would hold the plum-bob string against your vehicle and if the plum-bob dropped onto the sidewalk, no matter how little, you received a $25 fine the first time, $50 the second time, and $100 each time thereafter. If you did not pay, the HOA attached a “workman’s lien” against your home. There are laws concerning the planting of non-native plants in Arizona and another enforcer would visit your yard (front and back) each month to ensure you did not violate this. There was absolutely no modification allowed to your home without written permission by the HOA building committee (cost $100 per application–no refund for disapprovals…). In the two years we lived there, I never saw anything ever done, except maintaining the Status-quo…
It did my heart good one day when I heard about a terrible oil spill in the back end of the subdivision. As it turned out, someone stopped by the Sidewalk Nazi’s home one night and paid a visit to his classic Lincoln Continental (with the Spare Tire in the back, no less) and unscrewed the oil pan bolt. The whole crankcase full of oil ran down the driveway, across the sidewalk, and down the gutter. He had the responsibility of cleaning up that mess, I do not know if he or his insurance paid, but I guess he felt “violated” and started parking that beast in his garage. But that did not deter him from his “appointed rounds…”
Just before we left (I retired from the Air Force) we bought an RV and we knew the rules were very specific about RVs, they could only be parked for short periods for loading and unloading. We bought the RV in Phoenix and drove it back to Tucson and only stopped at the house for a quick “pit-stop” before bringing it to the Air Force Base for storage. We were there barely 15-minutes. But two days later, we received a “nasty” letter from the HOA warning us not to break the RV parking rules again. I called them and tried to find out what I did wrong and they were very closed-mouth and only said that I was “reported” but they would not disclose the reporter… the next time we took the RV out, We were stopped for less that 30-minutes (I video taped it…) and this time we received an even nastier note letting us know that we were “repeat offenders”… the third time, I took the letter to the Post Office and asked them to “return to sender, the addressee had moved…”
I guess that got their attention and the next letter was sent “Return Receipt” which we never acknowledged. They soon started putting the notices on the front door, which we let accumulate. We moved out about month later…
Once again, I apologize for such a long write-up but having moved and lived in 17-different locations (States, Countries, and Continents…), I’ve seen a lot… and my problem is I like to share…