mikefinch: titwrench: This is farked up not only because they busted an old lady but that fire hydrant NEVER should have been painted black and white in the first place. The color of hydrants actually has significance:
Standard is yellow or white depending on the amount of pressure the supply line contains. White is usually in rural areas and have more pressure than an urban yellow hydrant. This rule, however is not always followed.
RED= hydrant is on PRIVATE property and is paid for by the property owner therefore it is not to be used by the fire department without permission from the property owner.
Black= a fire hydrant that is no longer active, usually it has been replaced somewhere nearby.

Ok - the city OK'd the painting project - so obviously there is a city full of off colour hydrants. In my town all the hydrants had been painted. Yes one even like a dalmatian. We got tons of snow. And rural hydrants? Are you nuts? what kind of moronic municipality would have rural fire hydrants? For farksake, i drank from a goddamn dugout for the first 16 years of my life and your telling me that some places will run pressurized water out to butfark nowhere for fire fighting? Maybe we just live in different places...

The fire department has a map of all the hydrants in the city. They don't arrive on site and wildly search for a hydrant. Someone would say - "OK the hydrant is near this address or this corner". This is a city project and was likely OK'd by the fire department. they know where the hydrants are, and they know they might be dressed up in children's paint. If the fire department is aware of it, and ok with it then whats the problem??????

To me? this old bag sounds like a self righteous old bag. And it sounds like the judge felt he had better things to do then fine some baggy old pain in the ass who would only raise more of a fuss.