(A) Opportunity for hearing. The owner or person entitled to possession of a vehicle to be towed as an abandoned vehicle shall have seven days after the date of mailing or personal delivery of the notice to request, in writing, a pre-tow hearing. Subsequent to this seven-day period, the vehicle may be towed, if the owner has not filed a written hearing request within the seven-day period, and any hearing rights under the provisions of this subchapter will be deemed waived.
(B) Schedule of pre-tow hearings. The pre-tow hearing shall be scheduled for a date within 14 days of the mailing or personal delivery of the pre-tow notice. The municipality shall not be required to delay towing longer than such a 14-day period.
(C) Request for pre-tow hearings. Requests for a pre-tow hearing are to be made in person to the office indicated on the notice. Requests for hearing by persons who reside more than 50 miles from the municipality may be made by mail. Forms for such requests shall be made available at the Police Department. At the time of making the request, the owner will be provided a hearing date and time by mail or in person, as the circumstances require.
(D) Appointment of Hearing Officer. The municipality shall choose an officer or employee of the municipality to serve as Hearing Officer. In no case shall that Hearing Officer be an individual who was involved in the initial decision to tow the vehicle. The Hearing Officer shall have the authority to require the presence of the enforcement officer who initiated the proposed tow or any other municipal personnel.
(E) Nature of hearing. The hearing shall be informal in nature, and the rules of evidence shall not apply. The hearing will not be determinative of, or adjudicate, any citation relative to any vehicle. After receiving all relevant evidence, the Hearing Officer shall make a written decision based upon a preponderance of the evidence as to whether towing of the vehicle is authorized by the laws of the state or the code or any applicable ordinances of the municipality, with a specific statutory, code or ordinance section cited in the decision. The owner shall be provided a copy of such pre-tow hearing decision.
(F) Decision to tow and rates to be charged. If the preponderance of the evidence supports towing and compliance with the provisions of this subchapter, the Hearing Officer shall direct that the vehicle be towed, with any towing and storage costs to then be imposed upon the owner thereof. The fees to be charged for towing and storage services shall be no more than the maximum rates set by the Chief of Police pursuant to the provisions of § 90.34 of this chapter. The owner of said vehicle having had such a hearing may avoid the towing by immediately removing the vehicle from the improper location to a proper, lawful location and correcting any unlawful condition of the vehicle.
(G) Decision not to tow. If the preponderance of the evidence fails to support towing of the vehicle, the Hearing Officer shall direct that the vehicle shall not be towed. The municipality shall furnish a copy of such decision to the owner, who may place it inside the vehicle in a location plainly visible from the outside, such as the dashboard or rear window. No vehicle about which such a decision has been rendered shall be towed by the municipality unless the circumstances under which the decision was rendered have changed. If, at some subsequent time, the municipality should wish to tow the vehicle from the same location, it shall follow the same procedures required for the towing of any other similarly situated vehicle.
(H) Reports and documents to be retained; contesting decisions. Originals or copies of all notices, pre-tow hearing decisions, towing reports and any associated police reports or documents shall be retained by the Police Department for a period of at least five years after each hearing, or after each tow if no hearing was requested or held. The municipality or the owner may contest the decision of the Hearing Officer in any manner provided by law.
(Prior Code, § 90.28) (Ord. 85-O-1183, passed 7-3-1985)