LA CROSSE, Wis. (WXOW) – Getting the boot means different things to different people.

On one hand, the La Crosse Police Department gave the boot to a vehicle after its owner failed to pay what the department said was more than $1,200 in parking violations.

Last fall, the department announced they were starting to put a parking boot on vehicles that had five or more violations and unpaid tickets of more than 60 days. They sent out notices to violators prior to starting the program for them to pay what was owed.

Once the boot was on, someone spray painted on the side of the van “Victim of Piracy” as a way to protest the boot.

A number of pictures of the van quickly made the rounds on social media around La Crosse. That included the La Crosse Police Department, who took a lighthearted approach to the situation.



When police talked about starting the parking boot program, they said there are more than $300,000 in unpaid fines in the city.[metaslider id=”94821″]