SALEM – A Lynnfield woman who was given a $300 ticket for parking in a handicap spot outside BJ’s Wholesale Club in Danvers in March has turned to the courts to appeal a decision by the parking clerk to dismiss the ticket.Janice L. Eberle, 56, of 6 Timberhill Lane, Lynnfield, filed the civil litigation on her own this week in Salem Superior Court against the town of Danvers.Eberle complains that using the handicap spot on March 30 was “unavoidable” due to her physical disability and weather conditions.However, Eberle does not have a handicap plate or placard on her vehicle.She appealed the ticket to the town’s parking clerk, Stephen Delaney, but in his denial letter he explained he understood she returned to the store to pick up something she had forgotten, but because she already had admitted to parking in the handicapped spot he could not dismiss the ticket. He said the ticket is considered valid and cannot be voided.Now Eberle wants a Superior Court judge to decide her case and find her not responsible.Filing a civil complaint in Superior Court costs $275, plus an additional charge for sending notice to the opposing party, but Eberle, who represented herself, filed a sealed affidavit claiming she was unable to afford the fees and the reasons why. A judge reviewed her affidavit and then waived all fees associated with the complaint.
