Cat, you can almost completely eliminate this sort of encounter if you acquire an handicap hangtag for your dashboard rear view mirror. In our state, all that is required to get one is a note from the doctor (in this case DA's doctor) stating that she needs handicap assistance. The note is then taken to the county department of motor vehicles to the office that handles car registrations and they will issue the tag.
The tags have expiration dates in our state but they are good for several years before they have to be renewed and our state does not charge for them.
This then allows us to park in the handicap-designated spaces, as long as the tag is put on the rear view mirror on the dash.
We prefer the hangtag over a license plate because we can move it from one of our vehicles to the other, depending on which one we are driving.