San Juan Capistrano Municipal Code Art. 1 General Provisions

§ 6-1.01. Adoption of County animal control provisions.¶

(a) Subject to the particular additions, deletions and amendments hereinafter set forth in this chapter, the rules, regulations and conditions of the Codified Ordinances of the County of Orange as contained in:

(1) Division 1 of Title 4;

(2) Article 1 of Division 1 of Title 5;

(3) Sections 5-1-29 and 5-1-30 of Article 2 of Division 1 of Title 5;

(4) Article 3 of Division 1 of Title 5;

(5) Division 2 of Title 5; and

(6) Article 17 of Division 3 of Title 5;

as may be amended from time to time by the Board of Supervisors of the County of Orange, California, as well as such other regulations adopted by the Board of Supervisors concerning animal control, including those which relate to fees, are adopted by reference under the authority of Sections 50022.1 through 50022.9 of the Government Code of the State of California and made a part hereof as though fully set forth herein as part of the San Juan Capistrano Municipal Code and the same are hereby established and adopted as the rules, regulations, provisions and conditions to be observed and followed to govern animal control, welfare and license requirements in the City of San Juan Capistrano. One full copy of the above-specified provisions of the Codified Ordinances of the County of Orange, certified to be a true copy by the City Clerk of the City of San Juan Capistrano, is to be kept on file at the office of the City Clerk of the City of San Juan Capistrano for public inspection.

(b) Penalties.

(1) Any person who violates any provision of this section shall be guilty of an infraction, except as otherwise provided in subsection (b)(2).

(2) Any person who violates any provision of Section 4-1-48, 4-1-51, or 4-1-95 of Division 1 of Title 4 or any provision of Title 5 of the Codified Ordinances of Orange County adopted hereby is guilty of a misdemeanor. Moreover, any person who violates any other provisions of Division 1 of Title 4 the Codified Ordinances of Orange County and the violation occurs within one year of the occurrence of two other separate violations of this division by that person is guilty of a misdemeanor. Each day on which a violation occurs or continues shall constitute a separate offense.

(3) Any license required by Article 4, Division 1 of Title 4 of the Codified Ordinances of the County of Orange not purchased or renewed within 15 days after expiration, or the date on which they come due, shall be considered delinquent and a late fee as determined by resolution of the Board of Supervisors shall be added to the cost of the new license. The Director may waive the above late fee if the Director determines the applicant made a reasonable effort to comply with the above deadline.

(4) Any person convicted of a misdemeanor for a violation of any of the provisions of this section shall, unless otherwise specifically provided in this section or by statute, be punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment in the County Jail for a period of not more than six months or by both such fine and imprisonment.

(5) Any person convicted of an infraction for a violation of any of the provisions of this section shall, unless otherwise specifically provided in this section or by statute, be punishable by:

(A) A fine not exceeding $100 for a first violation;

(B) A fine not exceeding $200 for a second violation of the same Code provision within a period of one year;

(6) An infraction is not punishable by imprisonment. A person charged with an infraction shall not be entitled to a trial by jury. 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, his or her own recognizance or a deposit of bail.

(7) Except as otherwise provided by law, all provisions of law relating to misdemeanors shall apply to infractions including, but not limited to, powers of peace officers, jurisdiction of courts, periods for commencing action and for bringing a case to trial and burden of proof.

(8) Barking dog and animal nuisance civil fines. Fines for violating the provisions of Subarticle 2 of Article 2 of Division 1 of Title 4 of the Codified Ordinances of Orange County shall be as follows:

(A) Fine for first offense (per citation): $250.

(B) Fine for second offense within same 12 month period (per citation): $275.

(D) Fine for fourth offense within same 12 month period (per citation): $333.

(E) Fine for fifth offense within same 12 month period (per citation): $366.

(F) Fine for sixth and subsequent offense within same 12 month period (per citation): $403.

In the event that a fine imposed under the authority granted by said Subarticle 2 of Article 2 of Division 1 of Title 4 remains unpaid for 30 days after it is due and payable pursuant to Section 4-1-59.7 of the Codified Ordinances of Orange County, an amount equal to the fine shall be added as a late penalty and the late penalty and fine shall become due immediately. If a Hearing Officer upholds the issuance of a citation in an administrative hearing, the late penalty will be assessed if the fine is not paid within 30 days from the conclusion of the hearing. Failure to timely remit payment of a citation fine and/or late penalty authorized pursuant to said Section 4-1-59.7 will result in criminal liability and a warrant may be issued for a violator’s arrest. Nonpayment of such fine and/or late penalty shall be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment in the County jail for a period of not more than six months or by both such fine and imprisonment. The City at its discretion may pursue any and all legal and equitable remedies for the collection of unpaid fines and late penalties. Pursuit of one remedy does not preclude the pursuit of any other remedies until the total fines and late penalties owed by a violator under this subarticle have been collected.

(c) Amendments. The provisions adopted hereby are intended to apply to animal control and regulation within the jurisdiction of the City of San Juan Capistrano in the same manner as they apply to animal control and regulation within the unincorporated area of the County of Orange. Therefore, the provisions adopted hereby shall be amended as necessary to achieve that goal, including amending references to the County or the unincorporated area of the County to references to the City of San Juan Capistrano as necessary to achieve that goal. Only those provisions of Title 5 of the Orange County Ordinances relevant to animal related facilities including animal exhibitions, animal rental establishments, animal rescuers, commercial stables, grooming parlors, kennels and pet shops are adopted hereby.

(Ord. No. 309 § 1; Ord. No. 922 § 1; Ord. No. 1053 § 3, 2018)

Exceptions & meaning →

§ 6-1.02. (Reserved)¶

§ 6-1.03. Horses on sidewalks.¶

It is unlawful for any person to ride any horse upon a sidewalk, except as may be necessary to enter or leave adjacent property.

(Ord. No. 295)

Exceptions & meaning →

§ 6-1.04. Canine litter.¶

(a) Definitions. For the purposes of this section, unless otherwise apparent from the context, certain words and phrases used in this section are defined as follows:

"Canine"

shall mean and include any domesticated member of the species “Canis familiaris” but shall exclude other members of the family “Canidae.”

"Guide dog"

shall mean and include any properly trained canine certified by a licensed guide (seeing eye) dog agency and actually being used by a blind individual.

"Owner of a canine"

shall mean and include any individual who owns, harbors, has charge of, has control of, keeps, or maintains a canine.

(b) Public nuisances. The Council hereby finds, determines, and declares that canine feces defecated and allowed thereafter to remain on any public or private property without the express consent of the owner of such property constitutes a public nuisance and a hazard and detriment to the public health, welfare, and safety.

(c) Failure to remove unlawful canine litter. It is unlawful for the owner of a canine to fail, either wilfully or through failure to exercise due care or control, to immediately remove and dispose of in a sanitary manner any feces which have been defecated and deposited on public or private property without the express consent of the owner of such property.

(d) Exemptions. The provisions of this section shall not apply to a legally-certified blind individual being accompanied by a guide dog.

(Ord. No. 403, 1980)

Exceptions & meaning →