Thousand Oaks Municipal Code Art. 1 Generally

(a) Except for parking violations of Article 4 of Chapter 3 of Title 4 of this Code, the violation of any other provision of this Code or other ordinance of the City, may be prosecuted as an infraction punishable by fine, or as a misdemeanor and punishable by fine or imprisonment, or both, in accordance with Government Code Section 36900, et seq. All violations shall be a misdemeanor unless made an infraction by: (1) the City Attorney filing a complaint in the Municipal Court specifying that the offense is an infraction; or, (2) the issuing of a citation specifying that the violation is an infraction; or, (3) the City Attorney making a motion in court to reduce a misdemeanor to an infraction if such motion is made prior to the trial on the matter.

(b) Each day a violation of this Code or other ordinance of the City continues shall constitute a separate offense. The continuing violation of any provision of this Code shall constitute a public nuisance which may be redressed by civil or criminal action, abated by mandatory or prohibitory process of a court of competent jurisdiction or pursuant to Chapter 7 of this title.

(§ 1, Ord. 770-NS, eff. February 26, 1981, as amended by § 1, Ord. 907-NS, eff. February 11, 1986 and §1, Ord. 1183-NS, eff. June 1, 1993)

Whenever in this Code any act or omission is made unlawful, it shall including causing, permitting, aiding, abetting, suffering, or concealing the fact of such act or omission.

(a) Penalty for infraction. Every violation charged as or determined to be an infraction is punishable by (1) a fine not exceeding One Hundred and no/100ths ($100.00) Dollars for the first violation; (2) a fine not exceeding Two Hundred and no/100ths ($200.00) Dollars for a second violation of the same ordinance within one year; (3) a fine not exceeding Five Hundred and no/100ths ($500.00) Dollars for each additional violation of the same ordinance within one year.

(b) Penalty for misdemeanor. Every violation charged as or determined to be a misdemeanor is punishable by penalty of fine or imprisonment, or both. A fine shall not exceed One Thousand and no/100ths ($1,000.00) Dollars and imprisonment shall not exceed six (6) months.

(§ 2, Ord. 907-NS, eff. February 11, 1986)

Statutory reference: Infraction penalties, see California Government Code § 36900 Misdemeanor penalties, see California Government Code § 36901 and California Penal Code § 19

Whenever in this Code the punishment for a crime is left undetermined between certain limits, the punishment to be inflicted in a particular case shall be determined by the court authorized to pass sentence, within such limits as may be prescribed by this Code.

Every person found guilty of violating any of the provisions of this Code and sentenced to imprisonment shall be imprisoned in the County Jail.

The amount of any fee, service charge, utility charge, license, or tax of any nature whatsoever imposed by any provision of this Code shall be deemed a civil debt owing to the City. An action may be commenced in the name of the City in any court of competent jurisdiction for the collection of the amount of any such delinquent or unpaid fee, service charge, utility charge, license, or tax, together with any penalties applicable thereto as prescribed by this Code. The remedy prescribed by this section shall be accumulative, and the use of an action to collect such an amount as a debt by civil action shall not bar the use of any other remedy provided by this Code or by law for the purpose of enforcing the provisions thereof.

In any civil action against a person to collect any fee, service charge, utility charge, license, tax, or any other charge or obligation imposed by any provision of this Code, or to enforce any other duty or obligation imposed by any provision of this Code, if the person has failed for thirty (30) days after demand prior to the commencement of the action to make payment or otherwise perform in accordance with the applicable provisions of this Code, and it appears to the court that such refusal was without reasonable cause, the court may allow to the plaintiff a reasonable attorneys’ fee and include such fee in any judgment that may be rendered in such action. The failure of a person to defend any such action shall be deemed prima facie evidence that failure to make payment or otherwise comply was without reasonable cause.

(§ 1, Ord. 491-NS, eff. September 12, 1974)

(a) When the maintenance, condition, construction, or use of any real property is such that it violates any section of the Thousand Oaks Municipal Code, and such a situation violating that Code continues past the date for City code compliance, as set forth in a written notice to the owner or party in possession informing them of that violation, the City may do all or any part of the following:

(1) Record with the Ventura County Recorder a Notice of Violation of the Thousand Oaks Municipal Code setting forth all violations related to the real property.

(2) Require the owner to obtain from the City a Certificate of Compliance indicating the correction of the Code violations, and pay a certificate processing fee which will be equal to all the costs incurred by the City in connection with its inspection and code enforcement efforts from the initial discovery of the situation until such violations have been corrected and such certificate can be issued. The certificate shall be issued when the property is in full compliance with the City Codes.

(3) Require the owner, as part of the application fee for any needed permit which the property owner failed to obtain before the activity or use was initiated, to pay a code enforcement cost surcharge in an amount equal to the City’s cost for its code enforcement efforts.

(4) Request, as a condition of probation or sentencing on any criminal conviction of such City code violation, that the defendant provide full restitution to the City for such inspection and code enforcement costs.

(b) The written Notice of Violation described in Subsection (a) shall be mailed to, or personally served on, the owner of record of the real property on which the code violation exists, and, if deemed appropriate by the City, to the party in possession of that property. The notice shall contain a warning that the owner may be obligated to pay all of the City’s code enforcement and inspection costs incurred in obtaining compliance with the Code should the property owner not correct the violation within the time specified in the written notice.

(§ 1, Ord. 1140-NS, eff. March 17, 1992)