Call the PD. You have the car number. If they seem uninterested write a letter to the chief of police, copy the mayor and the local paper.
Get a picture of the EV Only sign in front of the car. Send it to the PD, and ask them if it is official policy to allow cruisers to park in EV spots. I would think this would be equivalent to parking in handicap parking spots... Maybe the police feel they have the authority to park anywhere they want. In which case, broadcast this photo far and wide...
precisely, I've never been near ventura ca, I am just reposting the pic from another source in the hopes of wide distribution will cause more embarrassment for that police squad
Here's their fb page: https://www.facebook.com/venturapd. I'll post the pic there. - - - Updated - - - couldn't post a photo, so had to link.
here is the reply from the city of ventura via their FB page City of Ventura - Government Please contact our Ventura Police Dept Front Desk at 805-339-4400. As a reminder, community members may call the 24 hour non-emergency number 650-8010 to report issues.
Why doesn't the person who took the photo (and is presumably local) just follow up? And maybe the police were on an emergency call.
You see a lot of emergency calls leading to the local doughnut shop and the local 24/7 diner, do you?
Doubt they'd take the extra seconds to back in if they were on an emergency call. Maybe they think it's OK because it's a hybrid...I don't think CA has a law yet that you have to be charging while parked there, so could be that even the PD is confused.
Actually, we do have such a law. And it generated a bit of consternation in the EV community since it implies you could be towed and fined if someone unplugs you. But of course we also don't want people occupying the spots just out of convenience. Which is also why I prefer to see payment-required stations over free ones.
There are various types of Emergencies. Not all are STAT but some can be urgent...or cannot drive around for 10 minutes to find a spot. If other spots were readily available, complain, if not , I would say cut the person some slack.