They're not life-threatening but they can be a nuisance.

They are those cars and trucks -- clunkers really -- abandoned on streets with flat tires, cracked windows, cobwebs and expired registration tags.

"They're an eyesore," said Frank Johnson, the recently elected president of the Jurupa-area Community Citizens on Patrol. "They detract from the neighborhood and impact property values."

About twice a month, the Community Action Team from the Jurupa Valley Sheriff's Station patrols the community, armed with a list of vehicles to be checked and a stack of yellow tags warning owners that the vehicles must be moved and/or registered in a week to 10 days or it will be towed.

Any vehicle parked on a county road for longer than five days is in violation of Riverside County Ordinance 413.

On Jan. 3, the team tagged 65 vehicles in the Rubidoux area: 27 were subsequently towed when they were rechecked on Jan. 17.

In just 90 minutes on a recent Thursday, the team tagged 33 cars in the Glen Avon area from a list of 130, before being called to another assignment.

"These cars are a blight on the neighborhood," Riverside County sheriff's Sgt. John Ruffcorn said. "They can be a safety hazard and sometimes a criminal problem."

And while some might complain that law enforcement needs to be spending its resources on something more important than abandoned cars, Ruffcorn disagrees.

"Our action team is not taking away patrols from neighborhoods," Ruffcorn said. "We are a supplemental unit. We work to take the pressure off regular patrols."

And, in some cases, assist, Ruffcorn said.

Some of the vehicles tagged are motor homes, horse trailers or large trucks that block the front of a home, preventing patrol deputies from seeing if the home is being burglarized or vandalized. It is all part of community policing, Ruffcorn said.

It is a badly needed service, said Bob Brison, president of the Mira Loma Chamber of Commerce and a member of Community Citizens on Patrol.

"There are people who use the street as a parking lot for cars they don't drive or register or insure," Brison said. "They don't belong on public streets."

Glen Avon resident Dennis Burda agreed.

"These cars trash up the neighborhood," Burda said as he eyed a tagged tan Toyota Civic parked across the street from his home on Bold Ruler Lane. It belongs to his daughter.

"I told the deputies I don't want it here," Burda said. "I'm glad they're going to tow it away."

Burda said the car, which does not run, had been parked there for three months despite his repeated requests to his daughter to take it away.

Karen Eakins, who lives on Dapple Lane, said she supported the program but was irritated that three vehicles parked in front of her home -- a car, a truck and a motor home -- had been tagged.

"I think the program is a good idea but they should investigate before they waste their time," Eakins said. "These aren't abandoned vehicles. They're all registered and they don't have broken windows."

Jurupa area residents wanting to report a car parked on their street for more than five days can call the Jurupa Valley Sheriff's Station at (909) 955-2600 or the non-emergency dispatch line at (909) 776-1099.