(A) A peace officer is authorized to move a vehicle, require the driver or other person in charge of a vehicle to move the same or have the vehicle removed by a wrecker service on the police wrecker rotation list to the nearest place of safety or to the premises of the wrecker service, under the circumstances hereinafter enumerated:
(1) When any vehicle is left unattended upon any bridge, viaduct, tunnel or public street in the city where such vehicle constitutes an obstruction to traffic;
(2) When any vehicle is illegally parked or is otherwise legally parked so as to block the entrance to any private driveway and it is impracticable to move the vehicle from in front of the driveway to another point on the street;
(3) When any vehicle is found upon a street and a report has previously been made that the vehicle has been stolen;
(4) When any such officer has reasonable grounds to believe that any vehicle has been abandoned;
(5) When a vehicle upon a street is so wrecked or disabled that its normal operation is impossible or impractical and the person or persons in charge of the vehicle are incapacitated by reason of physical injury or other reason to such extent as to be unable to provide for its removal or custody, or are not in the immediate vicinity of the wrecked or disabled vehicle;
(6) When a peace officer arrests any person driving or in control of a vehicle for an alleged offense and such peace officer is by this code or other law required to take the person arrested immediately before a magistrate;
(7) Whenever any police officer of the city finds a vehicle standing upon a street, public or private property in violation of any state law or local code or ordinance provision.
(B) Any peace officer of the city is authorized to remove any vehicle parked or standing in or on any portion of a street when, in the opinion of the officer, the vehicle constitutes a hazard or interferes with a normal function of a governmental agency, or by reason of any catastrophic emergency or unusual circumstance the safety of the vehicle, other vehicles, other property or an individual is imperiled.
(C) When a peace officer stops a vehicle for an alleged violation of a city ordinance or state traffic law or other law applicable to the operation of a vehicle on the roadway and the vehicle's owner or operator fails to show evidence of financial responsibility as required under Tex. Trans. Code, Ch. 601, as amended, and has been previously convicted of failing to show evidence of financial responsibility as required, the officer is authorized to impound the vehicle.
(D) When a peace officer pull is made in accordance with divisions (A), (B), or (C), the peace officer shall notify Police Communications of the circumstances and request that the wrecker service on the police wrecker rotation list for that week be called and directed to the scene to remove the vehicle.
(E) In the event that a wrecker does not arrive at the scene of a peace officer pull location within a reasonable time after being notified or is unable to promptly clear the scene, the peace officer at the scene may notify Police Communications that the next operator on the wrecker rotation list be called to arrive at the scene.
('68 Code, § 29½-11) (Ord. 8-1987-47, passed 8-11-87; Am. Ord. 07-2019-39, passed 7-9-19) Penalty, see § 119.99