Hermosa Beach Municipal Code Ch. 1.04 Violations and Penalties

Contents:

1.04.010 Violations of Code.

1.04.020 Misdemeanors.

1.04.030 Infractions.

1.04.040 Reclassification of misdemeanors as infractions.

1.04.050 Additional provisions.

1.04.060 Holiday safety enhancement zone.

No person shall violate any provisions or fail to comply with any of the requirements of this Code. Violations of this Code are punishable as set forth in this chapter.

Any person violating any of the provisions or failing to comply with any of the requirements of this Code shall be guilty of a misdemeanor unless such violation or failure to comply is expressly stated by this Code to be an infraction or is subject to a civil administrative penalty pursuant to Chapter 1.10. Any person convicted of a misdemeanor under the provisions of this Code shall be punishable by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period not exceeding six (6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Each such person shall be guilty of a separate offense for each and every day during any portion of which any violation of any provision of this Code is committed, continued or permitted by such person and shall be punishable accordingly.

1. Penalties. Any person violating any provision or failing to comply with any mandatory requirement of this Code expressly stated by this Code to be an infraction shall be guilty of an infraction. Except as otherwise provided in this Code, any person convicted of an infraction shall be punishable by:

2. A fine not exceeding one hundred dollars ($100.00) for a first violation;

3. A fine not exceeding two hundred dollars ($200.00) for a second violation of the same provision of the Code within one (1) year;

4. A fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) for each additional violation of the same provision of the Code within one (1) year.

5. No Counsel for Infractions at Public Expense. An infraction is not punishable by imprisonment. A person charged with an infraction shall not be entitled to have the public defender or other counsel appointed at public expense to represent him or her unless he or she is arrested and not released on his or her written promise to appear, on his or her own recognizance, or on a deposit of bail.

A violation of any provision of this Code section which is classified as a misdemeanor may be charged as an infraction when:

1. The prosecutor files a complaint charging the offense as an infraction, unless the defendant, at the time he or she is arraigned, after being informed of his or her rights, elects to have the case proceed as a misdemeanor; or
2. The court, with the consent of the defendant, determines that the offense is an infraction. In that event, the case shall proceed as if the defendant had been arraigned on an infraction complaint.

1. Each Day a Separate Offense. Unless otherwise specified, each person shall be guilty of a separate offense for each and every day during any portion of which any violation of any provision of this Code is committed, continued or permitted by such person and shall be punishable accordingly.
2. Included Offenses. Whenever in the Code any act or omission is made unlawful, it shall include causing, permitting, aiding, abetting, suffering, or concealing the fact or such act of omission.
3. Violations Deemed To Be a Public Nuisance. In addition to the penalties hereinabove provided, any condition caused or permitted to exist in violation of any of the provisions of the Code shall be deemed a public nuisance and may be summarily abated as such by the city, and every day such condition continues shall be regarded as a new and separate offense.

1. Holiday Safety Enhancement Zone. Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary, certain violations of this Code designated as infractions in Chapters 9.04, 12.20 and 12.24 are separately designated therein as misdemeanors if they occur within the boundaries of and during the effective dates and times of the holiday safety enhancement zone.

2. Geographical Boundaries. The city council designates as the holiday safety enhancement zone the area bounded on the north by the city of Manhattan Beach, on the south by the city of Redondo Beach, on the east by Valley Drive, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean, including the beach and the municipal pier.

3. Effective Dates and Times – Independence Day and New Year’s Day Holidays. The holiday safety enhancement zone shall be in effect on Independence Day and New Year’s Day as follows:

4. When the holiday occurs on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, the holiday safety enhancement zone shall be in effect from 8:00 a.m. on the day of the holiday to 6:00 a.m. on the following day.

5. When the holiday occurs on a Friday, Saturday, Sunday, or Monday, the holiday safety enhancement zone shall be in effect from 8:00 a.m. on Friday to 6:00 a.m. on the following Tuesday.

6. Effective Dates and Times – Memorial Day and Labor Day Holidays. The holiday safety enhancement zone shall be in effect from 8:00 a.m. on the Friday immediately preceding the holiday to 6:00 a.m. on the Tuesday immediately following the holiday. (Ord. 14-1348 §2, 2014)