11A - FALSE ALARM PENALTY - Laserfiche WebLink

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Sec. 10-280. False alarm penalty assessment. (a) When any emergency alarms, messages, signals or notices are received by the police department showing that an alarm user has failed to meet any of the requirements of this article, the chief of police is authorized to demand that the user of that alarm system disconnect the system until it is made to comply with said requirements. (b) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (c) and (d) of this section, any person having an alarm system which results in a police response in which the alarm proves to be a false alarm shall pay a penalty assessment fee to the City of Santa Ana in such amount as shall be established by resolution of the city council. The penalty assessment for false alarms from alarms designed to be activated while the business is open and/or occupied and requiring activation by an employee, or a residential alarm designed to be activated by the tenant from within the residence, which indicate the commission of a crime defined by California Penal Code Section 211 (Robbery) may be higher than the penalty assessment for other false alarms. (c) Except for robbery and/or panic false alarms for commercial establishments, which shall be assessed a penalty on the first activation, penalty assessments shall only be made for false alarms which number more than one (1) in a twelve (12) month period. This twelve (12) month period is determined by the date of the most recent false alarm. (1) On the sixth false alarm occurring within a twelve (12) month period, a written warning will be issued with an invoice stating that two or more false alarms within the twelve (12) month period will result in automatic non-response status. (2) On the eighth false alarm occurring within a twelve (12) month period, the location will automatically be placed on non-response status until all fees are paid and written proof of correction (alarm company work order) and a written request by the user requesting reinstatement is received by the City. (d) Commencing with the date of a new alarm installation and for six (6) months thereafter, there shall be no charge for the first through third false alarms. Section 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance. The City Council of the City of Santa Ana hereby declares that it would have adopted this ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases, or portions be declared invalid or unconstitutional. Ordinance No. NS-XXX Page 2 of 3 11 A-2