A. General: The following remedies exist for a vehicular public nuisance and are intended to be remedial not punitive. The Court shall address each of the following remedies in any written order following a trial on the merits and shall order those which are warranted given the facts of the case. Any voluntary abatement agreement may impose the same remedies but is not required to do so.
B. Closure/Detention Of Motor Vehicle: The motor vehicle involved in a vehicular public nuisance shall be closed/detained by impoundment of a period of not less than thirty (30) days and not more than one (1) year from the date of the final judgment, plus any extension of that period caused by a failure to comply with the reasonably necessary conditions for release of the motor vehicle. The issuance and execution of the closure/detention order shall not be deemed a bailment of property. The Court may, but is not required to, take into account the number of days the vehicle has already been detained pursuant to the Temporary Restraining Order, and may reduce the closure length by the number of days the vehicle has already been detained.
C. Fees And Actual Expenses: The Court shall order that the defendant(s) pay all towing fees, impoundment/storage fees, and all actual expenses incurred by the City in pursuing the action. Determination of the amount of fees, costs and actual expenses may be done through written filing and responses, and the Court may rule on the pleadings without holding a hearing. Alternatively, evidence of the amount of fees, costs, and actual expenses may be presented at any hearing.
1. Upon a showing of good cause, the Court may reduce the impoundment and storage fees owed pursuant to subsection C of this section, but shall not reduce the storage fees to an amount lower than the fair market value of the vehicle.
a. For the purposes of this subsection C, "good cause" may be established by a preponderance of the evidence that the storage fees exceed the fair market value of the vehicle. This may be shown using hearsay evidence.
b. The Court must make written findings of fact and conclusions of law that the moving party has established, by a preponderance of the evidence, that good cause exists to support any decision to reduce the amount of impoundment and storage fees owed.
D. Civil Judgment: In any case in which a vehicular public nuisance is established at trial, in addition to the remedies provided above, the Court shall impose a separate civil judgment on every person who committed, conducted, promoted, facilitated, or aided the commission of any vehicular public nuisance or who held any legal or equitable interest, or right of possession in any motor vehicle used in the vehicular public nuisance activity.
1. The civil judgment shall be in the liquidated sum of five hundred dollars ($500.00) and shall be imposed as a judgment against each defendant independently, separately and severally.
E. Other Terms Or Orders: The Court is permitted to enter any additional orders designed to prevent reoccurrence of the vehicular public nuisance activity, and such orders shall be valid for a period not to exceed two (2) years from the date of the order. (Ord. 21-33; Ord. 23-01)