Rio Hondo Citizen: Shame on you mayor for 16-month-old expired vehicle tags

Описание: It's a day Amy Tsoflias won't soon forget.

"He said, 'do you know that your inspection sticker is expired'... And I said... Oh my god... I didn't know."

A Rio Hondo police officer ticketed Amy last June while parked right outside city hall to pay a water bill.

She still has proof of her subsequent fine from a ticket--$141.90.

"I pled guilty because I was guilty," she explained.

But Amy doesn't think the law applies to the city's mayor.

Photos sent to Action 4 News appear to show Alonzo Garza's Ford Ranger pickup truck parked outside city hall in his designated spot with expired tags.

They're not just a few months overdue like Amy's registration was.

The mayor's sticker expired 16 months ago, while his inspection sticker expired 14 months ago.

Amy wants to know why he hasn't been ticketed.

"If it applies to the citizens of Rio Hondo... to an old lady in tennis shoes... it certainly should apply to the mayor," Amy said. "Primarily to the mayor... he should set the tone and the example."

State records show the vehicle in question is registered under the mayor's name.

The pick up in front of his Rio Hondo home is spotted with the same expired tags as shown in the photo sent to Action 4 News.

There's even an expired school parking permit hanging from the vehicle's visor.

But the mayor isn't home.

Or at least he never answers the door when Action 4 News tries to question him about the tags.

Several cell phone messages also go unreturned.

We show a photo of the expired tags to Police Chief Weldon Matlock.

"1-11 and 3-11... Totally expired," he said.

Violators face a maximum fine of $500 per violation.

"The mayor is not above the law," the chief said. "If we spot his vehicle on the road, he will be ticketed."

Vehicle registration fees contribute more than a billion dollars a year toward the building and maintaining of state and county roads, according to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.

Amy says the mayor isn't doing his part like everyone else.

"That money isn't going anywhere," she said.

The question is-- for how much longer?

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