Eighteen caught in disabled parking placard sting

The violators were improperly using placards to park for free at meters around the government center, said Vito Scattaglia, deputy chief of the state Department of Motor Vehicles' investigative division.

"We were pleasantly surprised, if you will, due to just how many violations there were," Scattaglia said. "We were not expecting the numbers we got."

During the six-hour operation, investigators determined that violators were using placards belonging to handicapped relatives who had not accompanied the drivers, as required by the law.

"They're failing to realize that by tying up all the metered spaces, it still causes a truly disabled person not to be able to find a space to park," Scattaglia said. "We take the issuance of that placard very seriously because of what it was intended to do - to assist the disabled to conduct business as usual."

Violators were issued misdemeanor citations, which can carry fines of $500 to $1,000 on top of court costs, community service working with the disabled, and probation.