A parking assist system and method that uses one or more cameras on the side of a vehicle to provide modified video output to an electronic display unit that can assist a driver with parallel parking. The modified video output provides the driver with real time visual feedback of the position of the vehicle, with respect to a curb or other barrier, and may also indicate if the current position is compliant with local parking regulations, as determined based on the vehicle's current location. The modified video output includes one or more visual indicators that may be graphically superimposed over top of the video output from the side camera so that the driver can see in real time when the vehicle is or is not lawfully parallel parked.