Lake Charles, LA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Section 20-77 targets vehicles left on Lake Charles streets or other public property for extended periods. Where parking is not otherwise prohibited, leaving a motor vehicle parked continuously for more than five days is itself against the law, and once that five-day mark passes the vehicle is presumed abandoned. That presumption lets the police department order the vehicle towed to a public or private storage facility, following the removal procedure set out in Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 32, §§ 474 through 476. An owner who wants to contest the tow can request a hearing under § 13-15(g) and (h) of the city code, and the state-law notice sent to the owner must spell out exactly how to request that hearing.

00 regardless of how long the vehicle sits unclaimed. These caps have stood since the section was last amended by Ordinance No. 8383 in 1987, so an owner billed above that ceiling has grounds to dispute the charge at the hearing. The rule applies citywide to any public street or public property, not just residential blocks, and works independently of the separate Chapter 23 process that governs junk or inoperable vehicles left on private city lots.