Question: My husband is handicapped and has a handicap license plate. He is able to drive. When he and I go shopping, we park in the handicap stall if one is available. On several occasions he would park in the handicap stall and wait in the car for me while I do the shopping. Is it illegal for him to park in the stall since he’s not leaving the car? My relatives say it’s illegal and that he should park in a regular stall since I am able to walk. Our understanding is that it is his privilege to park in the handicap stall, whether he stays in the car or decides to get out and shop with me while walking with a cane. When my husband applied for a handicap license plate all that was told to him at the DMV was that he should always carry the permit in his wallet, and he does. I’ve searched the web regarding the laws for handicap parking in our situation but couldn’t find any information on this. I would appreciate an answer to clear the matter.

Answer: No, it is not illegal.

“The reader is correct that the law does not require the person with the permit to exit the vehicle, although that is the intent, because it is the person with the placard who has a mobility limitation, not the driver who is able to walk (or passenger, in your case). But it is not illegal. It is a nuance,” said Francine Wai, executive director of the state Disability and Communication Access Board, which issues disability parking permits.

Authorities indicate “that it would be difficult to enforce a requirement that a person would have to exit the vehicle because a person could step out and then step back in a minute later and he/she would technically be exiting the vehicle.”

She added: “We do not see this happen a lot, where a person would transport a person with a placard solely for the purpose of using an accessible stall.”

Coincidentally, Kokua Line heard from a different reader who also stays in the car while legitimately parked in an accessible space. She had a harrowing experience Monday, which she shared in hopes of educating the public. Here’s a summary of her call:

I am elderly with multiple disabilities. I am the caregiver for my disabled husband, who is on dialysis, has had four heart attacks and has other problems. After his appointment, we stopped at McDonald’s on Beretania for ice cream cones. I parked in the disability stall (we have a placard), got out to get the cones and brought them back to the car to eat. My husband can’t walk into the restaurant. So we are sitting there eating our cones as fast as we can when this man comes up and starts pounding on our car window. It’s terrifying. The only thing I can think of is to honk the horn, hoping the guard will come over and help us. He doesn’t. The guy keeps pounding on the window. We are so scared. So finally I put the whole cone in my mouth so I can back up and get away. I can barely breathe. When I get to the guard I roll down my window and ask, “Why didn’t you help us?!” And he says, “Oh, he (the guy) was trying to make you move.” Then I see there’s a car waiting and the guy and a lady driving it take our spot. I want people to understand that we can eat in our car. Our car would be there the same amount of time whether we ate inside the restaurant or outside. We don’t want this to happen to another disabled person.

We followed up with McDonald’s, whom you had contacted when you got home. A manager confirmed your account, except to say that the person you referred to as a guard is actually a parking attendant, who has been asked to be more responsive. As noted in response to the first question, you were within rights to stay in the car while using the accessible parking space.

Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.