Thomas MacMillan Photo
Two days after they left a Crown Street lot in handcuffs, a mother and daughter returned with a bullhorn and two dozen supporters — to seek an investigation of the city’s towing monopoly.
Robyn (at center left in photo) and Rojonna Handy (at center right) returned to the lot, Crown Towing at 288 Crown St. at 6 p.m. Wednesday as part of a protest organized by activist Pastor Donald Morris (at left). The two women said they had been wrongfully arrested for assault there on Monday night and that the towing company swindled them out of $158.
Robyn, who’s 51, and Rojonna, who’s 24, were arrested on Monday and accused of assaulting a clerk at the towing company, a woman who is eight months pregnant. The mother and daughter had gone to the towing company to retrieve Rojonna’s burgundy 2005 PT Cruiser, which had been towed for unpaid taxes.
They arrived with a business card with writing on the back, which they claimed was a receipt from a previous $158 tax payment to a Crown tow truck driver. They argued that the card showed that the taxes had been paid. Staff at Crown Towing took the card, but refused to release the car, they said.
A dispute ensued, which ended with the Handys in handcuffs, after police reviewed surveillance tape that allegedly showed them assaulting the clerk. Police also found the business card ripped up in the trash. Cops took it as evidence after the Handys managed to take a photo of it, which Morris displayed at the protest.
The Handys said Wednesday evening that they were simply defending themselves from the clerk, who had acted as the aggressor in the confrontation. Robyn said the ripped-up card is evidence that the towing company was trying to hide an illegal practice by one of its drivers — pocketing money given for unpaid taxes. Tax money can only be collected by the city or, after hours, by the tow company.
Morris called on the city to investigate Crown’s towing practices and to cease its contract with the company. Protestors at the Wednesday night event had a petition (pictured) asking the city to do the same.
“This is an allegation that we take very seriously and it’s something that we’ll look into,” said city spokeswoman Elizabeth Benton.
Asked if the police department is investigating Crown Towing, Lt. Jeff Hoffman said, “If there was, I would not be able to comment on it.”
A Crown Towing staffer at the gate to the company’s lot declined to comment Wednesday night.
Crown has an exclusive contract with the city to tow cars for unpaid taxes. Click here and here to read previous stories reporting on concerns about that.
Through a bullhorn Wednesday night, Morris recounted what had happened to the Handys:
On Sept. 20, Rojonna discovered that her PT Cruiser was being towed for unpaid taxes. The car was already being lifted up by the tow truck when she asked what she could do to avoid having it taken away. The tow truck driver told her he would take the tax money she owed, and let her have her car back. She paid him $158 and received in return for a receipt written on his business card, with the understanding that her outstanding taxes had thus been paid.
Then on Monday she found that her car had been towed. She went to Crown Towing with her mom to try to get her car back, but found that the company wouldn’t release the car, even after taking the business card they brought to show the taxes were paid.
They wouldn’t give back the card, either, Morris said. “They wanted to be able to get rid of the evidence.”
Robyn then called the police from the parking lot. The towing company clerk came out and told her to leave, then pushed her and hit her, Robyn said.
“I am not an aggressive person,” Robyn said. “It was self-defense. She hit me first. All I wanted was the card.” She acknowledged that she had fought with the clerk, but said it was only to protect herself.
Rojonna acknowledged that she had fought with the clerk too, but was only trying to protect her mother. “Any human being who sees her mother getting hurt is going to defend her mother.”
“When I was pushed, it got out of control,” Robyn said.
Robyn and Rojonna said they’ve been smeared in the media since their arrests, which has had a negative impact on their lives. Their employer has placed them on administrative leave while they sort out the charges against them. They declined to say where they work.
Robyn said she thinks the tow truck driver just pocketed Rojonna’s money on Sept 20th. “They’re doing something totally illegal.”
Meanwhile Rojonna’s PT Cruiser is still being held by Crown Towing.
“I gave my money, and now I’m going to have to pay again to get my car because they want to rip me off,” she said.
The protest ended with a prayer.
This is just an absolute mess. I won't speak to the particulars of this event, but I do think that the towing and tax impounding policy needs to be dealt with.
The fact that the city outsources this to private towing contractors, and then selects one as "first among equals" to handle tax payments opens up so much potential for problems, that I can't believe we are doing this.
Does anyone have any experience with other cities? Do other cities do this?
I think that issues such as unpaid taxes and parking tickets should go through the city. Period. Let's get the towing companies out of this.