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PART 2: AUTHORITY TO REMOVE OR RELOCATE VEHICLES;
ABANDONED VEHICLES; INOPERABLE VEHICLES
§ 8-5-2-0 PURPOSE.
   Sections 8-5-2-1 et seq. are intended to promote the general health, safety and welfare of the people of the city by preventing inoperable and abandoned vehicles from littering property and creating health hazards. Sections 8-5-2-1 et seq. are also intended to protect the integrity and aesthetic importance of neighborhoods in the city by preventing the use of private and public property as a disposal area for inoperable and abandoned vehicles.
(Am. Ord. 25-2003)
§ 8-5-2-1 DEFINITIONS.
   For the purpose of §§ 8-5-2-1 et seq., the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
   CHIEF. The Chief of Police of the Albuquerque Police Department or his designated representative.
   DRIVEWAY. Any concrete, asphalt aggregate-paved or dirt path used primarily for vehicles, leading from a street or road to a garage or house.
   IMPOUND. The towing and/or storage of a vehicle by a wrecker service as authorized by the city or other transport of a vehicle by the Police Department or Parking Enforcement Officer for temporary storage pursuant to the execution of lawful police purposes.
   IMPOUNDMENT CHARGES. Impoundment charges shall include costs for both towing and storage of the abandoned and/or inoperable vehicle and administrative impound fees which shall be paid in the amount of either: (1) the reasonable expenses to the city, including without limitation, the costs of the search of owners and lien holders, mailing, service of notice, appraisal, publication of notice, sale, including advertising, and any other fees or penalties, including without limitation, those on account of parking violations pursuant to ordinance; or (2) $50, whichever is greater.
   INOPERABLE VEHICLE. Any vehicle which, for a period of at least three consecutive days, the engine, wheels, tires or other parts have been removed or on which the engine, wheels, tires, or other parts have been altered, damaged or otherwise so treated that the vehicle is incapable of being driven under its own motor power. A vehicle that is not registered or does not display a current valid license plate and validating sticker shall be deemed inoperable. Inoperable vehicle shall include any parts of a vehicle located separately from a vehicle. A vehicle shall be deemed inoperable when it has one or more flat tires or has one or more missing windshield or window, or has one or more windshield or window broken to the extent that visibility is limited so as to make driving such vehicle unsafe. An INOPERABLE VEHICLE does not include any motor vehicle that is kept within a building when not in use, nor a vehicle on the premises of a business enterprise operated in a lawful place and manner when necessary to the operation of such business enterprise. An inoperable vehicle does not include a vehicle for which a temporary sticker has been issued pursuant to § 8-5-2-3(B).
   LACK OF MOVEMENT. Proof that the vehicle's odometer shows movement of no more than 2/10ths of a mile during any specified period of time shall constitute prima facie evidence that the vehicle was left in one place.
   MAYOR. The Mayor of the city or his designated representative.
   OWNER. The registered owner or owners of a vehicle as recorded with the New Mexico Department of Motor Vehicles or similar agency of a state outside New Mexico. Where written notice to the owner is required by §§ 8-5-2-1 et seq., such notice shall be given to each registered owner. Where appearance of the owner is required by §§ 8-5-2-1 et seq., appearance may be by a person authorized in writing by the owner to appear on his behalf.
   PUBLIC PROPERTY. Any real property owned by any governmental entity within the municipal limits of the city, including but not limited to, the public way, right-of-way, roads, streets and alleys.
   VALIDATING STICKER. A tab or sticker or similar identification affixed to the vehicle, or to the license plate issued to that vehicle, which was issued by the state in which the vehicle is registered for the purpose of showing that the vehicle registration has been renewed and is current. A validating sticker for vehicles registered in New Mexico shall include a sticker defined in § 66-1-4.19 NMSA 1978.
   VEHICLE. Any device, in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a street or highway, propelled by a power other than human power, designed to travel along the ground by use of wheels, treads, runners, or slides, and shall include without limitations, automobiles, trucks, trailers, motorcycles, tractors, buggies and wagon. VEHICLE includes all devices regardless of the type of power, including but not limited to, electric power and any type of gas or gasoline power or any combination thereof and any connected trailer or semi-trailer.
   WRITTEN NOTICE. Notice sent by mail, to the owner's address as provided by State Motor Vehicle Division files except as provided herein:
      (1)   When such notice is required under the terms of §§ 8-5-2-1 et seq., weekends and holidays shall not be included when calculating the time for mailing notice unless provided otherwise in § 8-5-2-1 et seq.
      (2)   When a vehicle is registered in a state outside New Mexico, the Mayor or the Chief shall make all reasonable and diligent efforts to ascertain from the appropriate motor vehicle regulatory agency the name and address of all registered owners. If the name and address information for an in-state or out-of-state registered vehicle is not available soon enough to meet the time deadlines for mailing written notice, then the notice shall be mailed as soon as possible after the information is received and any specific times to mail notice shall not apply. If the license plate or vehicle identification number is expired, altered, or missing the Mayor or the Chief shall send any notice required under § 8-5-2-1 et seq. as soon as is reasonably practicable and any specific times to mail notice shall not apply.
      (3)   In lieu of mailed notice, notice may be given by personal service or in any other reasonable manner, so long as actual notice is given within the time limits provided. Notice may be effected by verbal notice to an owner who is present prior to or at the time of the towing of his vehicle, or to the driver or passenger of a vehicle, if the driver or passenger reasonably appears to have custody of the vehicle with the owner's knowledge and permission. Such notice shall be valid, however, only if the person so notified is informed inwriting of the location of the storage facility where the vehicle will be stored and a phone number where the owner can obtain further information from a municipal employee. When a vehicle owner's address cannot be obtained, the city may publish notice.
('74 Code, § 9-5-19.41A) (Ord. 67-1982; Am. Ord. 25-2003; Am. Ord. 2016-011)
§ 8-5-2-2 PROHIBITION OF REMOVAL AND RELOCATION.
   It is unlawful for a municipal police officer, or any municipal employee, to remove or relocate, or cause to be removed or replaced, any unattended vehicle from any street, alley or public way within the municipal corporate limits, except as provided in §§ 8-5-2-1 et seq. or § 8-1-3-12.
('74 Code, § 9-5-19.41B) (Ord. 67-1982; Am. Ord. 2016-011)
§ 8-5-2-3 ABANDONED AND INOPERABLE VEHICLES.
   (A)   A vehicle is abandoned if:
      (1)   The vehicle is parked on or along any street, alley or public way and the vehicle displays no current license plate and validating sticker; or
      (2)   The vehicle is left unattended on or along any public property, street, alley or public way in the same place for a period of 36 hours without a valid police sticker as defined in division (B) of this section;
      (3)   The vehicle is left on private property without the consent of the property owner, tenant, or occupant for a period of 24 hours; or
      (4)   At a private residence, any vehicle which is not lawfully parked on a driveway for a period of at least 36 hours.
   (B)   The Chief may issue a sticker temporarily permitting street storage, upon application of any owner or agent of an owner for any vehicle which is operable and has a current license plate. Stickers shall expire 15 days after issuance. No owner, whether an individual, business, corporation, organization, partnership or trust, is entitled to more than four stickers at any time.
   (C)   Any inoperable vehicle, or any part thereof, left on any public property or on any private property, without the consent of the property owner, tenant or occupant, is a public nuisance. Any abandoned vehicle, or any part thereof, is a public nuisance.
   (D)   When a vehicle is abandoned or is an inoperable vehicle on or along any public property, a street, alley or public way or is an abandoned or inoperable vehicle on private property without the consent of the property owner, tenant or occupant under circumstances which do not allow summary removal or relocation pursuant to § 8-5-2-4, a notification tag shall be attached to the vehicle in a manner which is readily visible containing the following information:
      (1)   The date and time the notification tag was affixed to the vehicle and the nature of the violation;
      (2)   An order requiring the removal of the abandoned or inoperable vehicle from the location within seven consecutive days of the day the notification tag was affixed to the vehicle;
      (3)   A statement that, pursuant to this section, the vehicle may be towed and stored at the owner's expense if it is not removed within seven consecutive days of the day the notification tag was affixed to the vehicle;
      (4)   A statement that the owner has the opportunity to challenge the proposed action at a hearing if a written request is submitted to the City Clerk within seven consecutive days of the day the notification tag was affixed to the vehicle;
      (5)   A phone number and name or title of a city employee from whom the owner can obtain further information about requesting a hearing; and
      (6)   The identity of the affixing person.
   (E)   Written notice containing the same information specified in division (D) of this section plus the location and description of the vehicle shall be mailed by certified class mail to the registered owner of the vehicle within one business day of affixing the notification tag pursuant to division (D) of this section. The identity of the vehicle shall include the license plate number, the vehicle identification number, and the make, type and color of the vehicle. The notice shall also advise the registered owner of the vehicle that if the vehicle is towed and is not claimed by the owner or the owner's authorized agent and/or the amount of any accrued impoundment charges are not paid within 30 days from the date the notification tag was affixed to the vehicle, the vehicle will be sold or otherwise disposed. In the event the vehicle is not registered in New Mexico, or if the license plate or vehicle identification number is expired, altered, or missing, the Mayor or the Chief shall send the notice required in this section as soon as is reasonably practicable and the requirement of this subsection to mail notice within one city business day of affixing the notification tag shall not apply. If the vehicle has already been towed by the city, the notice shall also state that the vehicle has been taken into custody and stored, the location from which the vehicle was towed, the reason for the impoundment, the location and telephone number of the storage facility where the vehicle is being kept, that daily storage charges will be assessed in addition to a towing charge, and that the owner may obtain release of the vehicle by paying impoundment charges in full pursuant to § 8-5-2-8 or by posting bond pursuant to § 8-5-2-10(E).
   (F)   Upon timely receipt of a request for a hearing as defined in division (D)(4) of this section, the Mayor shall order a delay of towing the vehicle until after the hearing. The hearing shall be conducted pursuant to § 8-5-2-10.
   (G)   If no hearing is requested pursuant to division (D)(4) of this section, and the vehicle is not removed within seven consecutive days of the day the notification tag was affixed to the vehicle, the vehicle may be ordered impounded by a municipal police officer or any municipal employee who is authorized to direct traffic or enforce state or local parking or motor vehicle laws.
('74 Code, § 9-5-19.41C) (Ord. 67-1982; Am. Ord. 25-2003; Am. Ord. 44-2003; Am. Ord. 54-2003)
§ 8-5-2-4 CIRCUMSTANCES PERMITTING SUMMARY VEHICLE IMPOUNDMENT OR RELOCATION.
   (A)   Any municipal police officer, or any municipal employee who is authorized to direct traffic or enforce state or local parking or motor vehicle laws, may order the impoundment of any vehicle within the municipal corporate limits, without prior notice to the owner or operator thereof, under the following circumstances:
      (1)   When any vehicle is left unattended upon any bridge, viaduct, or causeway or in any tube or tunnel where the vehicle constitutes an obstruction or hazard to traffic;
      (2)   When any vehicle is parked or left standing upon a street, alley, or public way in such a position as to obstruct the normal movement of traffic or in such a condition as to create a hazard to other traffic;
      (3)   When any vehicle is found upon a street, alley, public way or private property, and an offense report has previously been made that the vehicle has been stolen or a complaint has been filed and a warrant thereon issued charging that the vehicle has been stolen, and the owner is not available to, or cannot, immediately provide for its custody or removal;
      (4)   When any vehicle is illegally parked so as to block the entrance to a private driveway;
      (5)   When any vehicle is illegally parked so as to prevent access by firefighting equipment to a fire hydrant, or is illegally parked in a properly designated fire lane;
      (6)   When the person or persons in charge of a vehicle are by reason of physical injuries, intoxication, or illness incapacitated to such an extent as to be unable to provide for its custody or removal, and the vehicle is left as described elsewhere in this division (A) of this section, or the location of the vehicle is such that a reasonable person would believe that its owner would desire its relocation or removal;
      (7)   When the driver or person in control of a vehicle is lawfully taken into custody by a police officer, and the person is unable to immediately provide for the custody or removal of the vehicle, and the vehicle is left as described elsewhere in this division (A), or the location of the vehicle is such that a reasonable person would believe that its owner would desire its relocation or removal;
      (8)   When an abandoned, unattended, wrecked, burned or partially dismantled vehicle is creating a traffic hazard because of its position in relation to the street, alley or public way, or its physical appearance is causing the impeding of traffic;
      (9)   Wherever the use of the street, alley or public way or any portion thereof is authorized by the municipality for the purpose other than the normal flow of traffic or the movement of equipment, articles, or structures of unusual size, and the parking of any vehicle would prohibit or interfere with such use of movement, and signs giving notice that such a vehicle may be removed are erected or placed at least 24 hours prior to the removal;
      (10)   When any vehicle is parked or left standing where prohibited by ordinance or other state or local law. No vehicle may be removed pursuant to this division unless signs are posted giving notice of its removal at least 24 hours prior to the removal;
      (11)   When any vehicle is parked or standing in a manner so as to obstruct necessary emergency services or the routing of traffic at the scene of a disaster or removal is otherwise necessary in the interest of public safety because of any emergency, and moving the vehicle to a legal parking location is impractical. However, the owner or operator of a vehicle so relocated or removed shall not be subject to any relocation, removal or storage charges, if the vehicle is otherwise lawfully parked. Such charges shall be paid by the municipality, except that in the case of emergency utility repairs such charges shall be paid in advance by the utility company seeking removal;
      (12)   When a vehicle is parked, left unattended or abandoned during a fire, flood, storm or other public emergency which is apt to cause substantial damage to the vehicle, removal is in the best interest of the owner, and moving the vehicle to a safe location is impractical; or
      (13)   When a vehicle is either unattended or disabled and loaded with either a dangerous, flammable, combustible or explosive substance which, either by its presence or load conditions is likely to harm the health or safety of the public and moving the vehicle to a safe, legal location is impractical;
      (14)   When any vehicle is parked in such a manner as to obstruct or interfere with any road, sidewalk or right-of-way maintenance or construction, or any non-emergency utility work, and it is impractical to relocate the vehicle to another point where parking is legal. No vehicle shall be removed unless signs are posted giving notice of the work to be done and the possibility of removal at least 24 hours prior to the removal.
      (15)   When any vehicle has been immobilized with a vehicle boot for 72 hours.
      (16)   When a vehicle is being driven unsafely under state law due to one of the following:
         (a)   Failure to have insurance on the vehicle as required under state law and as documented by one of the following:
            1.   An admission by the driver or other occupant of the vehicle;
            2.    Confirmation through the New Mexico Department of Motor Vehicle records showing a prior citation for failure to have insurance within the past six months;
            3.    Confirmation by the citing officer that the insurance company that the driver claims covers the vehicle does not in fact cover it.
         (b)   Failure to have a driver's license as shown by New Mexico Department of Motor Vehicle records; or
         (c)   Driving when the driver's license has been suspended or revoked as shown by New Mexico Department of Motor Vehicle records.
   (B)   In lieu of towing and impoundment a municipal police officer, or any municipal employee who is authorized to direct traffic or enforce state or local parking or motor vehicle laws, may relocate or cause to be relocated any vehicle from any street, alley or public way within the municipal corporate limits, without prior notice to the owner or operator thereof when the relocation is to a safe, legal location, is practical without the use of a wrecker and the vehicle is found under the circumstances set forth in divisions (A)(11) through (15) above.
   (C)   Whenever a vehicle could be impounded or removed pursuant to §§ 8-5-2-1 et seq., and the driver of the vehicle is present, the police officer or authorized employee may order the driver to move the vehicle to another location.
   (D)   Whenever a sign is required under the terms of §§ 8-5-2-1 et seq., to give notice of the possibility of removal of a vehicle, such sign shall:
      (1)   State that the area is a tow-away zone, or that violations of the restrictions stated on the sign may result in towing; and
      (2)   Be readily visible from the point of removal.
('74 Code, § 9-5-19.41D) (Ord. 67-1982; Am. Ord. 8-1996; Am. Ord. 2016-011)
§ 8-5-2-5 NOTICE AND PROCEDURE FOLLOWING SUMMARY IMPOUNDMENT.
   (A)   After a vehicle is towed pursuant to § 8-5-2-4, the Chief shall promptly notify the Mayor, who shall send to the owner of the impounded vehicle notice containing the information required in § 8-5-2-3(E). The hearing procedure for vehicles that are the subject of summary impoundment is set forth in § 8-5-2-10.
('74 Code, § 9-5-19.41E) (Ord. 67-1982; Am. Ord. 25-2003)
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