Chapter 158 VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC.

158-39   REMOVAL AND DISPOSITION OF UNATTENDED, DAMAGED, ABANDONED, OR ILLEGALLY STOPPED VEHICLES

A. Any motor vehicle, trailer or semitrailer may be removed for safekeeping by or under the direction of a police officer to a storage garage or area:

1. Whenever such motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer is found on the streets of the Town or Public grounds, unattended by the owner or operator and constitutes a hazard to traffic or is parked in such manner as to be in violation of the law; or

2. Whenever such motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer is left abandoned for more than forty-eight (48) hours upon any street or publicly owned property; or

3. Whenever such motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer involved in any accident is found upon the highways or streets in the Town and is so located as to impede the orderly flow of traffic, the police may at no cost to the owner or operator remove such motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer from the highways or streets to some point in the vicinity where such motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer will not impede the flow of traffic; or

4. Whenever such motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer is on privately owned property other than the property of the owner of such motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer, within the Town, or is abandoned upon such privately owned property without the permission of the owner, lessee or occupant thereof, provided that no such vehicle shall be so removed from privately owned premises without the written request of the owner, lessee, or occupant thereof. When the owner, lessee or occupant of such privately owned property requests such removal, he shall be required to indemnify the Town against any loss or expense involved by reason of removal, storage or sale thereof.

B. It shall be presumed that a motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer, or part thereof, is abandoned if it lacks either a current license plate, a current county, city or town plate or sticker, or a valid state inspection certificate or sticker; and it has been in a specific location for ten (10) days without being moved.

C. Each removal shall be reported to the Chief of Police, and notice thereof given to the owner of the motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer as promptly as possible. The owner of such vehicle, trailer, or semi-trailer, before obtaining possession thereof, shall pay to the approved towing company all reasonable costs incidental to the removal, storage and locating the owner of the motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer before the vehicle shall be release.

(Ord. 3-00 Amended Entire Section 1-24-00-Effective Upon Passage)