Make California Post a Preferred Source A couple got a $293 lesson in automated enforcement after briefly stopping to enter a garage, but say their dashcam video captured the crucial seconds missing from the city’s evidence.
Chris Orsi and Sarah Haruko say they were waiting for pedestrians to clear their path in downtown Los Angeles when a passing Metro bus filmed their Kia in a bus lane on Sept. 24, triggering a parking ticket they insist they never deserved, according to FOX 11.
The costly encounter unfolded as the couple drove east on Sixth Street toward a friend’s garage near Spring Street. Now they’re fighting the fine and say they were told getting an answer could take six to eight months.
Reaching the entrance required moving into the bus lane. Before turning across the sidewalk, they say, they stopped for pedestrians and waited for the garage door to open.
As they entered the garage, Haruko said, a bus passed on their left. About a week later, a $293 ticket arrived in the mail. But the two recordings tell sharply different stories.
The city’s footage shows the bus passing their vehicle, then cuts off before the turn. Their dashcam continues rolling, showing them entering the garage seconds after the bus goes by.
That missing ending is at the heart of their challenge. They say the camera caught a brief wait to turn and turned it into an expensive parking accusation.
The couple told the outlet they contested the citation roughly five weeks earlier, only to learn the review could stretch well into next year.
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“I feel like they’re casting a wide net with their policies, and we all got caught in it, and we have to fend for ourselves,” Orsi told the station.
They’re now speaking publicly because they believe other motorists could face similar headaches. Haruko pointed to social media posts from drivers sharing their own bus-lane ticket complaints.
Despite the program’s AI technology, Metro says a human is supposed to review the evidence before a citation lands in a mailbox.
An LADOT traffic officer examines the camera material before a ticket is issued, according to Metro. Haruko wants that review to account for what happened beyond the bus camera’s abbreviated view.
“Involve a human that can look at the whole context of the situation,” she said.
Metro and LADOT operate the Bus Lane Enforcement program, using cameras supplied by Hayden AI. Ticketing began Feb. 17, 2025, following a warning period.
The financial stakes are substantial. LADOT figures show more than 115,000 citations issued across Los Angeles in 2025, generating approximately $19.6 million in gross revenue.
A first offense costs $293. Repeat violations carry a $406 penalty.
The dispute comes amid scrutiny of LA’s street-sweeping enforcement.
An L.A. Material investigation identified more than 12,500 allegedly erroneous tickets issued when sweeping was not scheduled, representing roughly $910,000 in fines.
LADOT initially said it proactively canceled mistakes and provided reimbursement instructions. But questions about thousands of apparently uncanceled citations eventually prompted an audit.
The department said it would reimburse paid tickets determined to have been issued in error.
Those findings concern a different enforcement system, but add to questions about how effectively the city catches ticketing mistakes.
For Orsi and Haruko, the immediate issue is simpler — their footage shows a turn into a garage, and they want that evidence considered before they’re made to pay.
The California Post reached out to LADOT for comment.
