That's not me. I didn't cause the fire. It's not my fault, too.
In the shadow of a warehouse fire that had already unsettled Boyle Heights for two weeks, nine residents found their vehicles impounded by the LAPD during emergency operations — and were handed fees they had not anticipated and may not have legally owed. The incident raises an enduring question about how institutions exercise authority in moments of crisis: whether the machinery of enforcement, even when deployed in service of safety, can itself become a source of harm to those it is meant to protect. City officials have since moved toward accountability, promising to waive fees and build protocols that might prevent the compounding of one disaster into many.
- A massive cold storage fire consumed Boyle Heights for nearly two weeks, stripping local business owners of customers, income, and stability before the emergency response itself added a new injury.
- Nine vehicles were towed by the LAPD under a legal provision that a former federal prosecutor argues may not have applied — meaning residents may have paid fees the city had no right to collect.
- Martin Ramirez stood in the street on video, begging officers for time to move his car voluntarily, and was refused; Juan Canil paid $100 to retrieve his truck while his family weighed that sum against groceries.
- Legal experts say a different vehicle code section would have allowed relocation without impoundment costs — a distinction that mattered enormously to families already financially hollowed out by the fire.
- Councilwoman Ysabel Jurado announced a motion to waive all remaining city fees and establish clearer emergency towing protocols, while the Official Police Garage separately waived its own charges.
- Residents who had already paid fees were left navigating a bureaucratic retrieval process — documents, identification, specific hours — as a final reminder that emergencies rarely arrive alone.
The Lineage cold storage warehouse fire had already cost Boyle Heights two weeks of disruption — emergency sirens, the smell of spoiled food, and businesses emptied of customers — when the LAPD added an unexpected burden. During firefighting operations, officers towed nine vehicles from the surrounding streets, and residents were charged fees to get them back.
Martin Ramirez, who owns a nearby auto repair shop, was captured on video pleading with an officer for the chance to move his car and his customers' vehicles himself. The officer apologized and ordered the tow regardless. Ramirez later said the accumulation of losses — the fire, the business, now this — brought him to tears. Juan Canil paid $100 to retrieve his truck. His wife, Maria Cuara, was direct about what that meant: it was money the family could have spent on food, taken instead by a process they hadn't caused and couldn't have anticipated.
The LAPD cited California Vehicle Code Section 22651(n) to justify the removals, noting that five of the nine vehicles had expired registrations and one was non-operational. But former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani argued the wrong statute had been applied — that a different provision would have allowed vehicles to be relocated without impoundment fees, and that the cost should have been borne by the city, not the residents.
Mayor Karen Bass's office acknowledged the hardship and said the city was committed to returning vehicles without additional costs. Councilwoman Ysabel Jurado, who represents the district, went further, announcing a motion to waive all remaining city fees and create new emergency protocols — clearer legal authority, better notification, and a defined path to make residents whole.
The Official Police Garage waived its towing and storage fees, but separate city fees remained outstanding. Residents who had already paid were left with the memory of an errand — documents, identification, specific hours at a specific address — that served as a quiet reminder of how quickly one crisis can branch into several.
The Lineage cold storage facility fire had already turned Boyle Heights upside down. For nearly two weeks, the neighborhood endured the constant wail of emergency vehicles, the acrid smell of spoiled food rotting in the summer heat, and the simple fact of catastrophe—a massive warehouse burning, lives disrupted, livelihoods threatened. Then, as families were still reeling, the Los Angeles Police Department added another blow: they towed nine vehicles from the streets surrounding the fire zone, and residents were left to pay the bill.
Martin Ramirez owns an auto repair shop near the warehouse. Cell phone video captured the moment he stood in the street, pleading with an LAPD officer to give him time to move his car and the vehicles belonging to his customers. "That's not fair, man," he said. "That's not me. I didn't cause the fire." The officer apologized but ordered the tow anyway. Ramirez later said the weight of it all—the fire, the lost business, now this—made him cry.
Juan Canil's truck was among those impounded. He paid $100 in fees to retrieve it. His wife, Maria Cuara, spoke about what that hundred dollars meant to a family already hemorrhaging money. "Right now, with all of the expense that everything is, it's very expensive," she said. "So, $100 is $100 that we can buy food too. But, he had to pay in order to take the car." The fire had already kept customers away from their shop for weeks. The towing fees were salt in an open wound.
The LAPD justified the removals by citing California Vehicle Code Section 22651(n), a statute that permits law enforcement to impound vehicles parked in restricted zones. Of the nine vehicles towed, five had expired registrations and one was non-operational. But Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor, questioned whether the officers had applied the right law. "Those vehicles can be moved, but the owner should not and will not pay for the cost of the tow," Rahmani said. "That's something that has to be worn by the city." He noted that LAPD could have invoked a different vehicle code section that allows for relocation without impoundment.
Mayor Karen Bass's office issued a statement acknowledging the hardship. The department had removed the vehicles to clear space for fire apparatus, the statement said, and the city was committed to reuniting residents with their cars without additional costs. Councilwoman Ysabel Jurado, who represents the district, went further. She said the emergency response itself was warranted, but the towing fees were not. "They would not have their cars towed and have this additional expense," she said. She announced plans to introduce a motion waiving all remaining city fees and establishing new protocols for future emergencies—clearer notification, proper legal authority, and a path to make residents whole.
The Official Police Garage waived all towing and storage fees, but the city fees remained a separate matter. Residents who wanted their vehicles back had to bring registration or title documents and matching identification to 608 N. Mission Road. The garage was open weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., weekends from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For families already stretched thin by the fire's impact on their neighborhood and their ability to work, retrieving a car became another errand, another reminder of how quickly an emergency can compound into multiple crises.
Notable Quotes
That's not fair, man. That's not me. I didn't cause the fire. It's not my fault, too. I ask you for time.— Martin Ramirez, auto repair shop owner, to LAPD officer
Those vehicles can be moved, but the owner should not and will not pay for the cost of the tow. That's something that has to be worn by the city.— Neama Rahmani, former federal prosecutor
So, $100 is $100 that we can buy food too. But, he had to pay in order to take the car.— Maria Cuara, wife of Juan Canil, whose truck was impounded
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why did the police tow cars that residents say weren't parked illegally?
The LAPD cited a vehicle code that allows impounding in restricted zones. But a former prosecutor says they may have used the wrong statute—there's another code that lets them move cars without charging the owners.
So the residents could have just moved the cars themselves?
That's what Martin Ramirez was asking. He told the officer he'd move them voluntarily. The officer said they needed to work and told him to stop being selfish. The cars got towed anyway.
What was the actual cost to people?
Juan Canil paid $100 to get his truck back. For a family whose business had been shut down for weeks by the fire, a hundred dollars isn't abstract—it's food money they didn't have.
Did the city acknowledge this was a mistake?
The mayor's office said it was unfortunate and promised to return cars without additional costs. Councilwoman Jurado went further—she's pushing to waive the fees entirely and create new protocols so this doesn't happen again.
What would those new protocols look like?
Better notification to residents, using the correct legal authority, and making sure people aren't charged when the city is the one moving their vehicles during an emergency.
Has anyone been made whole yet?
The Official Police Garage waived towing and storage fees. But the city fees are still being worked out. That's what Jurado's motion is about.