Vallejo Municipal Code Ch. 7.71 Nuisance Vehicles

This chapter is not intended to preempt state law, but is only intended to carry out the provisions of Vehicle Code Section 22659.5, or its successor. In the event there is a conflict between the provisions of state law and this chapter, the state law shall control.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

A vehicle used in the commission or attempted commission of an act that violates Sections 266h, 266i, or 647(b) of the California Penal Code or their successors, or Section 374.3 of the California Penal Code or its successor, is declared to be a public nuisance and shall be subject to seizure and impoundment for a period of up to thirty days if the owner or operator of the vehicle has had a prior conviction for the same offense within the past three years.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

For the purpose of this chapter the following words and phrases shall mean and include:

A. "Nuisance vehicle" means any vehicle used to agree to or engage in an act of prostitution, pandering, or pimping or to illegally dump waste matter in or upon a public road; such vehicle is a nuisance.

B. "Pandering" means procuring another person for the purpose of prostitution, a crime pursuant to California Penal Code Section 266i or its successor.

C. "Pimping" means deriving support or maintenance from the earning or proceeds of a prostitute, a crime pursuant to California Penal Code Section 266h or its successor.

D. "Prosecuting agency" means the district attorney of Solano County.

E. "Prostitution" means the solicitation of, agreement to engage in, or engaging in any act of prostitution, as defined in California Penal Code Section 647(b) or its successor.

F. "Illegal dumping" means to dump or to cause to be dumped waste matter in or upon a public or private highway or road, as defined in California Penal Code Section 374.3 or its successor.

G. "City" means city of Vallejo.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

A. A motor vehicle is subject to seizure and may be impounded for up to thirty days pursuant to this chapter if the motor vehicle is used in the commission or attempted commission of an act that violates Sections 266h, 266i, or 647(b) of the California Penal Code or their successors or Section 374.3 of the California Penal Code or its successor; and

B. The driver of the vehicle is validly arrested for the commission or attempted commission of an act that violates Sections 266h, 266i, or 647(b) of the California Penal Code or their successors or Section 374.3 of the California Penal Code or its successor; and

C. At the time of the arrest, the owner or operator of the vehicle has had a prior conviction for the same offense within the past three years.

D. Any period during which a vehicle is subjected to storage pursuant to this subsection shall be included as part of the period of impoundment.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

A. Within two working days after a vehicle is impounded under this chapter, the city shall send by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice to the legal and registered owner(s) of the vehicle at the address obtained from the department of motor vehicles that the vehicle has been impounded. The notice shall also inform the owner of an opportunity for a post-storage hearing to determine the validity of the storage or to determine mitigating circumstances establishing that the vehicle should be released.

B. The notice shall include all of the following information:

1. The name, address, and telephone number of the Vallejo police department;

2. The location of the place of storage and description of the vehicle;

3. If available, the model or make, the manufacturer, the license plate number, and the mileage of the vehicle;

4. The authority and purpose for the removal of the vehicle; and

5. A statement that, in order to receive a post-storage hearing, the owner(s), or their agent(s), shall request the hearing in person, writing or by telephone within ten days of the date appearing on the notice.

C. The city shall be prohibited from charging for more than five days of storage if it fails to notify the legal owner within two working days after the impoundment when the legal owner redeems the impounded vehicle.

D. The post-storage hearing shall be conducted within forty-eight hours of the request for hearing, excluding weekends and holidays. The chief of police is authorized to appoint an officer or employee to conduct the hearing, however, that hearing officer may not be the same person who directed the seizure of the vehicle.

E. In any hearing held under this chapter, the hearing officer shall establish whether there are reasonable grounds for the storage of the vehicle and determine whether there are mitigating circumstances establishing that the vehicle should be released. If it is determined at the post-storage hearing that there are no reasonable grounds for the storage of the vehicle, the city shall be responsible for the costs incurred for towing and storage.

F. Failure of the legal and registered owners, or their respective agents, to request or to attend a scheduled hearing shall satisfy the post-storage hearing requirement.

G. The city shall maintain a published telephone number that provides information twenty-four hours a day regarding the impoundment of vehicles and the rights of legal and registered owners to request a hearing.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

The registered owner or his or her agent shall be responsible for all towing and storage charges related to the impoundment. However, notwithstanding any provision of law, if a motor vehicle is released prior to the conclusion of the impoundment period because the driver was arrested without probable cause, neither the arrested person nor the registered owner of the motor vehicle shall be responsible for the towing and storage charges.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

A vehicle impounded under this chapter shall be released to the registered owner, or the registered owner's agent, prior to the end of the impoundment period under any of the following circumstances:

A. The driver of the impounded vehicle was arrested without probable cause.

B. The vehicle is a stolen vehicle.

C. The vehicle is subject to bailment and was driven by an unlicensed employee of a business establishment including a parking service or repair garage.

D. The driver of the vehicle is not the sole registered owner of the vehicle and the vehicle is being released to another registered owner of the vehicle who agrees not to allow the driver to use the vehicle until after the end of the impoundment period.

E. The registered owner of the vehicle was neither the driver nor passenger of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation, or was unaware that the driver was using the vehicle to engage in activities subject to Sections 266h, 266i, or 647(b) of the California Penal Code or their successors or Section 374.3 of the California Penal Code or its successor.

F. A spouse, registered domestic partner, or other affected third party objects to the impoundment of the vehicle on the grounds that it would create a hardship if the subject vehicle is the sole vehicle in a household, and that hardship outweighs the seriousness and severity of the act in which the vehicle was used.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

A. A vehicle impounded under this chapter shall be released to the legal owner, or the legal owner's agent, prior to the end of the impoundment period if both of the following conditions are met:

1. The legal owner is a motor vehicle dealer, bank, credit union, acceptance corporation, or other licensed financial institution legally operating in California, or is another person who is not the registered owner and holds a security interest in the vehicle; and

2. The legal owner, or the legal owner's agent, pays all of the towing and storage fees related to the seizure and impoundment of the vehicle.

B. No lien sale processing fees shall be charged to the legal owner who redeems the vehicle prior to the fifteenth day of the impoundment period. Neither the city, the impounding agency, nor any person having possession of the vehicle shall collect from the legal owner as described in Section 7.71.80(A)(1) of this section, or the legal owner's agent, any administrative charges imposed pursuant to Section 22850.5 of the California Vehicle Code or its successor, unless the legal owner voluntarily requested a post-storage hearing.

C. The legal owner, or the legal owner's agent, shall present the following documentation to the city, its law enforcement agency, impounding agency, person in possession of the vehicle, or any person acting on behalf of those agencies:

1. A copy of the assignment as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 7500.1 of the Business and Professions Code or its successor;

2. A release of liability from the city of Vallejo (if required by the city);

3. A government-issued photographic identification card; and

4. Any one of the following as determined by the legal owner or the legal owner's agent:

i. A certificate of repossession for the vehicle;

ii. A security agreement for the vehicle; or

iii. Title (whether or not paperless or electronic) showing proof of legal ownership for the vehicle.

D. Any documents presented may be originals, photocopies, or facsimile copies, or may be transmitted electronically. The city, its law enforcement agency, impounding agency, or any person acting on behalf of those agencies shall not require any documents to be notarized.

E. The city, its law enforcement agency, or any person acting on behalf of these agencies may require the agent of the legal owner to produce a photocopy or facsimile copy of its repossession agency license or registration issued pursuant to Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 7500) of Division 3 of the Business and Professions Code or its successor, or to demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the city, its law enforcement, or any person acting on behalf of those agencies that the agent is exempt from licensure pursuant to Section 7500.2 or 7500.3 of the Business and Professions Code or their successors.

F. Administrative costs authorized under subdivision (a) of Section 22850.5 or its successor shall not be charged to the legal owner of the type specified in Section 7.71.80(A)(1) who redeems the vehicle unless the legal owner voluntarily requests a post-storage hearing. The city shall not require a legal owner or a legal owner's agent to request a post-storage hearing as a requirement for release of the vehicle to the legal owner or the legal owner's agent.

G. The city, its law enforcement agency, or any person acting on behalf of these agencies, shall not require any documents other than those specified in this paragraph.

1. The legal owner or the legal owner's agent shall be given a copy of any documents he or she is required to sign, except for a vehicle evidentiary hold log book.

2. The city, its law enforcement agency, any person acting on behalf of these agencies, or any person in possession of the vehicle, may photocopy and retain the copies of any documents presented by the legal owner or legal owner's agent.

3. The legal owner shall indemnify and hold harmless a storage facility from any claims arising out of the release of the vehicle to the legal owner or the legal owner's agent and from any damage to the vehicle after its release, including the reasonable costs associated with defending any such claims.

H. The legal owner, who meets the requirements for release of a vehicle pursuant to Section 7.71.80(A)(1), or the legal owner's agent, shall not release the vehicle to the registered owner of the vehicle, or the registered owner's agent (unless the registered owner is a rental car agency) until after the termination of the impoundment period.

I. Prior to relinquishing the vehicle to the registered owner, the legal owner may require the registered owner to pay all towing and storage charges related to the seizure and impoundment of the vehicle.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

A. A vehicle seized and impounded pursuant to this chapter shall be released to a rental car agency prior to the end of the impoundment period if the agency is either the legal owner or registered owner of the vehicle and the he agency pays all towing and storage fees related to the seizure and impoundment of the vehicle.

B. The rental car agency may continue to rent the vehicle upon recovery of the vehicle. The rental car agency, however, shall not rent another vehicle to the driver of the vehicle that was seized until the impoundment period has expired.

C. The rental car agency may require the person to whom the vehicle was rented to pay all towing and storage charges related to the seizure and impoundment of the vehicle.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

A. A person operating or in charge of a storage facility where vehicles are stored pursuant to this chapter shall accept a valid bank credit card or cash for payment of towing, storage and related fees by a legal or registered owner, or the owner's agent, claiming the vehicle. A credit or debit card shall be in the name of the person presenting the card. For purposes of this section, "credit card" is defined as in subsection (a) of Section 1747.02 of the Civil Code or its successor and does not include a credit card issued by a retail seller.

B. A person operating or in charge of a storage facility where vehicles are stored pursuant to this chapter who violates Section 7.71.100(A) shall be civilly liable to the owner of the vehicle or the person who tendered the fees for four times the amount of the towing, storage and related fees.

C. A person operating or in charge of a storage facility where vehicles are stored pursuant to this chapter shall have sufficient funds on the premises of the primary storage facility during normal business hours to accommodate, and make change for, a reasonable monetary transaction.

D. Credit charges for towing and storage services shall comply with Section 1748.1 of the Civil Code or its successor. The city may include the costs of providing for payment by credit when making agreements with towing companies on rates.

E. A failure by a storage facility to comply with any applicable conditions of this subsection shall not affect the right of the legal owner, or the legal owner's agent, to retrieve the vehicle if all conditions required of the legal owner, or the legal owner's agent, for the release of the vehicle are satisfied.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)

Costs and fees incurred by the city or at the discretion of the city, pursuant to this section shall be set by resolution or ordinance as authorized by Section 22850.5 of the California Vehicle Code or its successor.

(Ord. No. 1650 N.C.(2d), § 1, 6-28-2011)