(A) Complete record required.
(1) All personal property which comes into the possession of any police officer, which has been found or stolen, or taken off the person or out of the possession of any prisoner or person suspected of or charged with being a criminal, and which is not known to belong to some person laying claim thereto, shall be, by the officer securing possession thereof, delivered into the charge of the Police Chief.
(2) The Police Chief shall, in a permanent record book kept for that purpose, make a record sufficient to identify the property, with the date and circumstances of the receipt thereof, and the name of the person from whom it was taken, and the place where it was found. The record shall also disclose the subsequent disposal thereof, giving the date of sale, name and address of the purchaser and the amount for which it was sold.
(3) For the purpose of this section, POLICE CHIEF means the Police Chief or his or her designee.
(B) Disposition of unclaimed property.
(1) The Police Chief is authorized to sell personal property, other than animals, money or legal tender of the United States, except as provided in division (B)(3) below, which has come into his or her possession in any manner, if:
(a) The owner of the personal property is unknown or has not claimed the property;
(b) The property has been in the custody of the Police Chief for at least 90 days; or
(c) The property or any part thereof is no longer needed to be held as evidence or for any other purpose in connection with any litigation.
(2) Any owner, to recover or claim property, must be able to satisfactorily prove ownership to the Police Chief.
(3) Any property found by a person other than public official which shall be delivered to any police officer for identification and registration, if not claimed or identified within 30 days, shall, within ten additional days thereafter, if requested by the finder, be returned to him or her, and a record of such disposal made thereof. However, in all other cases, only property in which the finder relinquishes any future claim to its ownership will be stored in the town police property room.
(4) The Police Chief shall file an application in the District Court of the county requesting the authority of the court to conduct a sale of such personal property or money or legal tender which has a fair market value of more than its face value. The Police Chief shall attach to his or her application a list describing such property or money or legal tender, including any identifying numbers and marks, the date the property or money or legal tender came into his or her possession, and the name of the owner and his or her address, if known. The court shall set the application for hearing not less than ten days nor more than 20 days after filing of the application.
(5) In any instance where the property has an actual or apparent value of more than $250, at least ten days prior to the date of the hearing, notice of the hearing shall be sent by first class mail, postage prepaid to each owner at his or her address as listed in the application. If the owner of any property with an actual or apparent value exceeding $500 is unable to be served notice by first class mail, notice shall be provided by one publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the town. The notice shall contain a brief description of the property or money or legal tender of the owner and the place and date of the hearing. The notice shall be posted at the assigned place for the posting of town notices, and at two other public places in the town.
(6) If no owner appears and establishes ownership to the property or money or legal tender at the hearing, the court shall enter an order authorizing the Police Chief to sell the personal property or money or legal tender for cash to the highest bidder at an auction sale, after at least five days’ notice of the sale has been published. The Police Chief shall thereafter make a return of the sale, and the order of the court confirming the sale shall vest title to the property or money or legal tender in the purchaser. The money received from the sale of the personal property or money or legal tender shall be deposited in the town General Fund after first paying court costs and other expenses.
(7) All monies or legal tender of the United States, except as provided in division (B)(3) above, which has come into the possession of the Police Chief pursuant to the circumstances provided for in division (B)(1) above, shall be transferred by the Police Chief to the Town Clerk-Treasurer for deposit in the General Fund. Prior to any such transfer, the Police Chief shall file an application in the District Court requesting the court to enter an order authorizing him or her to transfer the money for deposit in the General Fund. The application shall describe the money or legal tender, any serial numbers, the date the same came into his or her possession, and the name of the owner and his or her address, if known. Upon filing the application which may be joined with an application as described in division (B)(4) above, a hearing shall be set not less than ten days nor more than 20 days from the filing of the application. Notice of the hearing shall be given as provided for in division (B)(4) above. The notice shall state that, upon failure of anyone to appear to prove ownership to the money or legal tender, the court shall order the same to be deposited in the General Fund. The notice may be combined with a notice to sell personal property as provided for in division (B)(4) above. If no one appears to claim and prove ownership of the money or legal tender at the hearing, the court shall order the same to be transferred to the General Fund as provided in this division (B)(7).
(8) The provisions of this division (B) shall not apply to any dangerous or deadly weapons, narcotic or poisonous drugs, explosives, or any property of any kind or character, which the possession of is prohibited by law, nor to any property for which a specific procedure is otherwise established by law, ordinance or proper order. By order of the trial court, any such property filed as an exhibit or held by the town shall be destroyed, or sold or disposed of pursuant to the conditions prescribed in such order.
(9) Property authorized to be destroyed herein or by state or other law, or which cannot be sold or used by the town, shall be destroyed on order of the Police Chief. The destruction of personal property must be witnessed by at least three members of the Police Department who must sign a certificate of destruction listing all property destroyed, a general description of same, the date, time, place and manner of such destruction.
(C) Seized property.
(1) Gambling, report and disposition.
(a) If any personal property used for the purpose of violating any of the gambling laws of this state shall be seized by any officer or person with or without a search warrant, such officer or person is hereby required, within five days of the seizure, to make a written report under oath and file the same with the County Clerk, which report shall in detail state the name of the officer or person making the seizure, the place where seized and an inventory of the property or articles so taken into possession.
(b) Within five days after seizing such property, the officer shall deliver the property to the Sheriff of the county and take the Sheriff’s receipt therefor, in duplicate, and the Sheriff shall retain the same and all thereof until the same shall be destroyed pursuant to the orders of the court.
(c) In computing the time, five days, Sundays and holidays shall be excluded and not counted.
(d) A duplicate copy of the receipt shall be filed with the County Clerk, who shall keep a record of same. However, the Sheriff and his or her deputies shall be required to make the affidavit and issue the receipt and otherwise comply with the provisions of this section. The Sheriff shall be liable on his or her bond for the safekeeping of all such property so turned over to him or her under the provisions of this division (C)(1).
(2) Alcoholic beverages, disposition. If town police officers seize any apparatus, equipment, vehicle or instrumentality used for, or intended for use in, manufacturing or transporting any alcoholic beverages in violation of the state alcoholic beverage control laws, or any alcoholic beverages possessed, sold, transported, manufactured, kept or stored in violation of the state alcoholic beverage control laws, and if the court finds from a preponderance of the evidence that the property seized was lawfully subject to seizure, then the court shall render judgment accordingly and order the property forfeited to the town in which the seizure of the property took place. Such seized property shall be sold by the town, after giving ten days’ notice by one publication in a legal newspaper of the county at least ten days before such sale. Appeal from such an order may be taken as in civil cases. When such property is sold under the provisions of this division (C)(2), the proceeds thereof shall be distributed as follows:
(a) First, to the payment of the costs of the case in which the order of forfeiture was made and the actual expenses of preserving the property; and
(b) Second, the remainder shall be deposited with the town.
(D) Property of deceased person. The personal property of a deceased person shall be delivered only to the next of kin of such person or to the legally appointed representative of his or her estate. If the personal property is claimed by the legally appointed representative of the estate of the deceased, a certified copy of the order of the District Court appointing such person shall be deemed sufficient authority to support the claim. If the personal property is claimed by the next of kin, the claimant shall furnish an affidavit to the effect that he or she is the person entitled to possession of the property; the affidavit shall be deemed sufficient authority to support the claim. If personal property of a deceased person remains unclaimed for a period of 90 days, it shall be disposed of in the appropriate manner provided in this section.
(E) Exchange of unclaimed or confiscated weapons.
(1) Unclaimed or confiscated weapons which have been in the possession of the Police Department for 120 days or more may be traded by the Police Chief or his or her designee, for new weapons for use by the Police Department. The unclaimed or confiscated weapons may only be traded to such gun dealers who have complied with applicable state and federal regulations concerning firearms and, in the opinion of the Police Chief or his or her designee, are reputable.
(2) In trading such unclaimed or confiscated weapons, the Police Chief or his or her designee shall advertise for bids for such trade. Such advertisement for bids shall be done in accordance with the prevailing and established bid procedure as formulated by the purchasing entity of the town.
(3) The value of such unclaimed and confiscated weapons as hereinabove discussed shall in all cases be determined by the fair market value of the new weapons received in such trade.
(F) Recovery by owner. If any property is sold as herein provided, and the owner thereof takes and recovers possession of same from the purchaser, the amount paid therefor shall be returned to the purchaser, upon verified claim being submitted and approved by the Police Chief.
(Prior Code, § 5-1-4)