(A) The Police Department shall charge a mandatory administrative processing fee in the amount of $50 to any person(s) posting bail or bond in any legal process, civil or criminal, or on any bookable arrest, including a warrant, to be levied and paid at the time of posting of said bail or bond. Any person arrested and charged a mandatory administrative processing fee by the city may, in accordance with the provisions set forth below, petition the city to seek a reimbursement of the mandatory administrative processing fee pursuant to the provision of this section.
(B) In the event that the petitioner that paid the mandatory administrative processing fee of $50 is found not guilty or without probable cause, the matter in which the petitioner was charged and required to pay the fee was stricken on leave, nolle prosequi, abated or otherwise dismissed or terminated without adjudication of guilt or liability with an order of supervision entered, or the arrest warrant pertaining to the charge with which the petitioner was charged and required to pay the fee was quashed, the mandatory administrative processing fee may be returned to the petitioner. The petitioner shall be entitled to a pre-seizure administrative hearing prior to paying the mandatory administrative processing fee to the city.
(C) A Hearing Officer shall be appointed pursuant to the provisions set forth below to adjudicate petitions for reimbursements of the mandatory administrative processing fee. The Hearing Officer shall have successfully completed a formal training program which includes the following:
(1) Instruction on the rules of procedure of the administrative hearings over which the Hearing Officer shall preside;
(2) Orientation to the applicable subject area;
(3) Observation of administrative hearings;
(4) Participation in hypothetical cases, including ruling on evidence and issuing final orders; and
(5) A Hearing Officer must be an attorney licensed to practice law in the state for at least three years.
The Mayor is hereby authorized to appoint the Hearing Officer to adjudicate the liability of petitioners as well as any other person to any other position that is deemed necessary for the effective and efficient management of the adjudication of hearings for reimbursements of the mandatory administrative processing fee.
(D) The city shall provide the petitioner notice of the time, date and location of the adjudication hearing. Minimally, the notice shall set forth the penalties for failure to appear at the hearing and in all respects and instances be made in accordance with all applicable laws.
(E) Service of the notice of the adjudicative hearing shall be made by the person issuing the notice by:
(1) Handing the notice to the petitioner or delivering the notice to any person 12 years of age or older at the residence of the petitioner; or
(2) Mailing the notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the petitioner.
(F) An administrative hearing to adjudicate petitioner's petition for a reimbursement on its merits shall be held at the date, time and place and in the manner set forth in the notice that is served as required by this section. All administrative hearings shall be recorded and shall culminate in a determination of liability or non-liability, made by the Hearing Officer, who shall consider facts and/or testimony without the application of the formal or technical rules of evidence. Evidence, including hearsay, may be admitted only if it is of a type commonly relied upon by reasonably prudent persons in the conduct of their affairs. The Hearing Officer shall, upon a determination of liability, assess the relief as deemed equitable. Petitioners may be represented by counsel at their own expense. The Hearing Officer shall be permitted to award a reimbursement if the criminal charge supporting the application of the mandatory administrative processing fee is found not guilty or without probable cause, the matter in which the petitioner was charged and required to pay the fee was stricken on leave, nolle prosequi, abated or otherwise dismissed or terminated without adjudication of guilt or liability with an order of supervision entered, or the arrest warrant pertaining to the charge with which the petitioner was charged and required to pay the fee was quashed.
(G) A final determination of liability shall occur after the Hearing Officer's determination of liability, and the exhaustion of, or the failure to exhaust, any administrative review procedures hereinafter set forth. When a person fails to appear at the administrative hearing to contest the imposition of the mandatory administrative processing fee on the date and at the time and place specified in a prior served notice, the Hearing Officer's determination of liability shall become final either upon the expiration of the time to appeal or a denial of a timely petition to set aside that determination.
(H) Any final decision by a Hearing Officer shall constitute a final determination for purposes of judicial review under the Illinois Administrative Review Law. A finding made under this section is a debt due and owing the city and may be collected in accordance with applicable law. A lien shall be imposed on the real estate or personal estate, or both, of the defendant in the amount of any debt due and owing the city under this section. The lien may be recorded and enforced in the same manner as a judgment lien pursuant to a judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction. No lien may be enforced under this section until it has been recorded in the manner provided by Article XII of the Code of Civil Procedure or by the Uniform Commercial Code. The Hearing Officer may set aside any judgment entered by default and set a new hearing date upon receipt of a petition filed within 21 days after the issuance of the order of default if the Hearing Officer determines that the petitioner's failure to appear at the hearing was for good cause, or at any time if the petitioner establishes that the city did not provide proper service of process.
(Ord. 11-06, passed 2-22-2011; Ord. 12-4, passed 2-14-2012; Ord. 12-9, passed 3-27-2012)