Abstract: A digital camera and laser-based distance-measuring device are mounted on a patrol vehicle, street sweeping vehicle, or in a handheld harness. The patrol is performed along a route of parked vehicles to determine if any of them are in violation of parking regulations. Information about the offending vehicle is visually captured, recorded, and transferred via wireless communication to another site for further processing. For distance-based parking violations, visual data capture may include an image of a vehicle bumper in combination with a fire hydrant, driveway or other point of reference along with a super-imposed numerical readout of the measuring device to indicate that the offending vehicle is parked outside the limits of acceptability.