A South Florida woman is facing $165,000 in parking fines after code enforcement penalized her for how she parked in her own driveway.
Sandy owns four cars, which do not fit properly within her driveway. She was therefore required to park them in such a way that they partially touched the grass and gravel on each side of the driveway, which was nonetheless still a part of her own property. The town also fined her $75 per day for causing cracks in her driveway and an additional $125 per day fine for a downed fence that was damaged during a storm.
Incidentally, the latter fine was accrued into $47,000 while Sandy Martinez was still waiting for her insurance payout. She was supposed to use this amount to rebuild the damaged fence. In her defense, the single mother mentioned that it was practically difficult for her to park all her cars one behind the other, since it would obstruct the sidewalk. Since the driveway was small, the cars had obstructed some parts of the gravel and grass on either side, which was unavoidable.
Considering the limited parking space, Sandy has since widened her driveway. However, code enforcers from Lantana stopped coming to her home to inspect the changes, which caused the fines to continue accumulating. A lack of communication from authorities became the primary reason fines continued to grow, even though she had already solved the issue.
Addressing the situation to local media, Sandy explained, “When you call the town of Lantana to get hold of the inspector to let them know that you’ve done what you’re supposed to do. You leave voicemail after voicemail, they call you, you call them, you’re playing phone tag, and finally you’re like, you know what, I’m not calling anymore.” She added, “I’ve let them know I’ve complied. Come check it out. No, they let the fines run for over a year, and that’s ridiculous.”
Sandy Martinez, a longtime Lantana resident and single mother, challenged the fines as unconstitutionally excessive. https://t.co/NuvHz1ylHN
— Black Enterprise (@blackenterprise) January 2, 2026
In court, Sandy Martinez was represented by the Institute of Justice. They argued that the fines were in violation of the Florida Constitution’s ‘Excessive Fines Clause’. The clause is designed to prevent individuals from getting fined to the level of poverty, when it comes to trivial violations. The whopping amount of $165,000 was not something very easy for anyone to pay in the name of fines.
Their statement in support of Sandy mentioned, “The government cannot lock you into a lifetime of crushing debt for such harmless code infractions. The punishment must fit the crime.”
Shockingly, the court did not see the fines as excessive, which is why it left Martinez in a deep financial crisis like never before. She is now robbed of the home equity that she has built up over the years. The court in her defense lawsuit mentioned that the state cannot foreclose her property, keeping in mind the Florida homestead exemption.
Senior Attorney Ari Bargil argued, “Six-figure fines for parking on your own property are shocking. The court’s refusal to hear Sandy’s case and clarify the Constitution’s protections from runaway government fines is a disservice to all Floridians.”
