An uproar of worry spread throughout the community in the recent months when individuals, among them students, discovered yellow-drawn check marks on the rear windshield of their vehicles.
UL Lafayette parents took to social media platforms, such as Facebook, to voice their concerns. One parent shared, “my daughter noticed this yellow check mark on her back window. Two other young ladies told her while in the parking garage that they noticed the yellow check marks on others’ cars also. ‘ALL FEMALES.’”
As mysterious as these incidents were, a great amount of misconception spread amongst the city. Some even thought the check marks were a means of human trafficking. The University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s police department (ULPD) conducted an investigation back in September to understand where and why these check marks were originating. “It has been determined the yellow check marks are used by employees of pay-to-park parking lots in the downtown Lafayette area. These marks are used to verify who has paid their parking fee utilizing their parking app and not to be towed from the lot for a failure to pay for services,” ULPD shared in a Facebook post. Sergeant Lance Frederick, public information officer of the ULPD, shared that the department was notified of only two vehicles with the check mark, and both vehicles were parked in a parking lot behind the establishment, The Office, in which R&R Towing is contracted.
The check marks have no connection to campus parking.
While most found relief after the investigation, the majority of people questioned the decision to physically mark vehicles. Others questioned why note slips were not used, voicing that a single drawn check mark without additional information was misleading and alarming.
The ULPD encourages reporting any suspicious circumstances immediately to the respective law enforcement agency first, rather than social media, to ensure the spread of proper and truthful information.