(A) Criminal nuisance violation. For purposes of this section, a criminal nuisance violation shall be defined as a criminal citation, arrest or court-issued search warrant for crimes involving:
(1) Prostitution;
(2) Controlled substances;
(3) Alcohol intoxication;
(4) Menacing;
(5) Assault;
(6) Terroristic threatening;
(7) Resisting arrest;
(8) Disorderly conduct;
(9) Outdoor gambling; or
(10) Violations of KRS Ch. 527.
(B) Criminal activity nuisance.
(1) No owner of residential, commercial or vacant property located in the city shall allow his or her property to be used as the site for any criminal activity nuisance. A criminal activity nuisance shall exist when the following number of criminal nuisance violations have occurred at a premises within a one-year period:
Level 1 Criminal Activity Nuisance | Level 2 Criminal Activity Nuisance | Level 3 Criminal Activity Nuisance | |
Premises with 1 to 8 residential units | 2 criminal nuisance violations | 3 criminal nuisance violations | Each additional criminal nuisance violation |
Premises with 9 or more residential units | 5 criminal nuisance violations | 7 criminal nuisance violations | Every 3 additional criminal nuisance violations |
(2) A violation of this section shall be a civil offense, subject to the civil fines set forth in § 92.99.
(C) Excluded illegal activity. Any other provision of this section notwithstanding, the following shall not be used as the basis for a warning, citation or abatement order for a criminal activity nuisance or criminal nuisance violation:
(1) Any activity otherwise constituting a criminal nuisance violation in which persons legally residing at the premises are only victims of the criminal activity;
(2) Any incident of domestic violence perpetrated against a resident, licensee or invitee of the premises; and
(3) Any incident where the person requesting emergency services had a good faith belief that assistance was needed for themselves or another pursuant to KRS 218A.133.
(D) Duty of Police Department. The city’s police shall, as soon as possible, but in all cases within 30 days of criminally citing or arresting persons or executing court-issued search warrants for crimes constituting criminal nuisance violations, notify the City Manager, or his or her designee, in writing of the specific violation investigated, the address of the property on or in which the violations occurred and the circumstances of the violation. After the police notify the City Manager, or his or her designee, of a criminal nuisance violation at a property for the first time, the City Manager, or his or her designee, shall notify the owner of the property of such violation by regular U.S. mail.
(E) Notice and citation. Whenever the City Manager, or his or her designee, receives information that a criminal activity nuisance exists in or upon residential, commercial or vacant property, it shall issue a citation as provided for by this chapter.
(F) Other remedies available.
(1) Enforcement of this section does not impair or restrict the ability of the city to bring a separate action to revoke the occupational license of a landlord or business who allows a criminal activity nuisance to exist on the landlord’s property or to bring an action before the Code Enforcement Board for the imposition of civil fines, as set forth in § 92.99 of this chapter, or take any other action pursuant to city ordinance.
(2) No civil fines will be assessed by the Code Enforcement Board until after notice is sent pursuant to division (E) above.
(1984 Code, § 92.10) (Ord. O-13-03, passed 4-1-2003; Ord. O-39-07, passed 9-11-2007; Ord. O-37-12, passed 10-23-2012; Ord. O-30-15, passed 8-18-2015; Ord. O-32-16, passed 11-15-2016; Ord. O-15-20, passed 8-11-2020) Penalty, see § 92.99