A local Homeowners Association (HOA) has learned a costly legal lesson after taking matters into their own hands and towing a resident’s vehicle from what they mistakenly claimed was private property.
The Unexpected Tow
The dispute unfolded on June 6, 2026, when resident Mr. Zuiker noticed via an AirTag tracker in his vehicle that his car was suddenly on the move. After contacting the Austin Police Department, he discovered his car had been towed by Reliant Towing at the behest of the Bolden Creek HOA.
During the virtual court hearing presided over by Judge Holmes, the HOA’s representative, Mr. Manning, argued that the private streets of the community were subject to their rules (CC&Rs). Manning asserted that the vehicle had been parked illegally in the area for nearly a month and claimed the association had placed a warning sticker on the window prior to the tow.
The Power of Photographic Evidence
However, Mr. Zuiker was fully prepared to fight back, presenting a rock-solid timeline backed by digital evidence.
While the HOA claimed the car was abandoned for a month, Zuiker proved he had actually driven the car to an H-E-B grocery store and parked it in that exact spot on June 2—just four days before it was towed. He presented a timestamped grocery receipt and iPhone photos taken the day he parked.
More importantly, Zuiker’s photos proved a crucial geographical detail: he was parked on the east side of South Second Street. While the Bolden Creek condominium complex sits on the west side of the street, the east side is a completely public roadway.
“I took photographs at the time I parked to document the fact that I was parked on the public roadway,” Zuiker testified, explaining that he was familiar with the neighborhood’s boundaries.
A Swift Verdict
The turning point of the trial came when Judge Holmes pressed the HOA for concrete proof of ownership.
“Do you have any proof?” Judge Holmes asked the HOA representative. “Can you show me a deed that says this land is included on their land? Because it looks like a public street to me, and there are absolutely no signs whatsoever around there.”
With no deed to present, Mr. Manning was forced to concede: “Your Honor, I do not.”
Faced with a complete lack of property deeds or signage, Judge Holmes quickly ruled in favor of the plaintiff. The HOA was ordered to reimburse Mr. Zuiker $321.45 for the cash towing fee, in addition to covering all court costs.