I was cited for contempt today

Here is the story. Most of you have been to my house, and know that my garage is in the back. A couple of weeks ago, they painted a red strip all along the shared driveway and called it a fire lane. One morning, I needed to load a heavy box into my truck, so I pulled it up to my garage. I loaded the box, and then went inside to get my laptop, some sales pamphlets, etc. I come out 10-15 minutes later, and there is a parking ticket on the windshield. The ticket is for $250, but that's not even the best part. The parking ticket was issued at 4:15AM!!!!!

So, I went down for my hearing today. I was sitting in the small court room, listening to my fellow citizens come in and beg for leniency. They were getting 20-30% knocked off their ticket amounts. Well, my turn came up, and I got ready to tee off like Tiger Woods before a drive. Here is what I said, verbatim, from the court records:

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Your Honor, I have neighbors who are in law enforcement, and I have neighbors who make a living practicing law. All of them gave me suggestions for how I could get this ticket reduced, and some believed that I could have it wiped out completely with the right argument. I am not going to heed any of their advice, however, because I want to make a plea to the City of Las Vegas for some common sense. Knowing that your enforcement agents are roaming middle-class neighborhoods before the crack of dawn to give parking tickets is very unsettling to me. Half of the homes in my neighborhood are vacant due to foreclosure, and to levy exorbitant fines on the people who are left is immoral and wrong. I would be embarrassed, your honor, to even be associated with an agency that carried the mission of "let's see how many people we can make miserable today." (right here I received a warning from the Marshal/bailiff to wrap it up) The amount of the fine, I continued, is bad enough, but the process for the dispute borders on an organized criminal effort on the part of the city. I have a job where I can set my own schedule, bu I know the city counts on no-shows who can't take 3-4 hours from work to come down here and wait for judgment. I'm sure an actuary has studied how much the city can increase it's revenues by holding hearings only in the middle of the day on Tuesdays and Fridays.
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Judge: your objection to our city's way of doing business is noted, I am going to cite you for the full amount since, by your own admission, you were parked in an illegal zone.
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Me: Your Honor, I want to reassert my opinion that this agency exists for no other reason than to extort money from the people of Las Vegas.
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Judge: That is the second time you have accused this court of having nefarious motives, and this one brings with it a contempt fine of $50. (slams gavel once)
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Me: Your Honor, who would I appeal this decision to?
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Judge: Me
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Me: Okay, I appeal your decision
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Judge: Denied (another gavel)
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At this point, the Marshal came to lead me out of the room by the arm, and I was sent into the room with the cashier to pay my citation. I paid the ticket, and the $50 contempt fine, but I felt like my fellow parking victims were with me. I got a few smiles and thumbs up on my way out. The $50 was worth it.