A. Statute Authority: The authority for the passage of this section is found in 625 Illinois Compiled Statutes 5/11-207, 5/11-208, 5/11-208.1, 5/11-209, and 5/11-209.1.
B. Impoundment Authorized: A motor vehicle involved in an unlawful attempt to flee or elude police officers shall be subject to impoundment under the procedures set forth in this section.
C. Records And Reports:
1. A police officer shall, if possible, record the vehicle make and color and the issuing state and number of the license plate of a vehicle that the officer has attempted to stop through use of emergency signal equipment on the officer's vehicle. If the operator of the other vehicle fails or refuses to stop, and if the police officer forgoes or abandons pursuit of the other vehicle for reasons of public safety, the officer shall report the recorded information as directed by the chief of police for delivery to appropriate sections of the police department responsible for impoundment and towing of vehicles.
2. The police officer's report shall also include: the date, approximate time and approximate location of the attempted stop; the reason for the attempted stop; the emergency signal equipment activated by the police officer; and the public safety considerations and/or department rule, regulation or policy that caused the police officer to forego or abandon pursuit of the described vehicle.
D. Notice Of Intent To Impound: The police department shall send a notice of intent to impound the vehicle described in the police officer's report to the owner of record of the vehicle. The notice shall be sent either by first class mail or by messenger to the address of the owner of record as indicated in state registration records. The notice shall include the following: a statement that the operator of the vehicle failed or refused to stop when ordered to do so by the village police officer; the date, approximate time and approximate location of the event; the description of the vehicle as contained in the officer's report; and notice of an opportunity to contest eligibility for impoundment. A copy of the notice shall be forwarded to the village hearing examiner to be appointed by the mayor, with the advice and consent of the board of trustees, and who shall have all the powers of a hearing officer authorized by title 10, chapter 1, article B of this code. A notice is presumed delivered upon being deposited with the United States postal service with proper postage affixed.
E. Contesting Impoundment: An owner of record who receives a notice referred to in subsection D of this section may contest eligibility for impoundment by written request delivered to the village hearing examiner, postmarked within fourteen (14) days after the delivery of the notice. The village hearing examiner shall set a date for a hearing on the eligibility of the vehicle for impoundment, and shall notify the owner of the date, time and place of the hearing. The hearing date must be no more than thirty (30) days after the request for a hearing has been filed. At the hearing, the police officer's report shall be considered prima facie correct. In order to disprove the vehicle's eligibility for impoundment, the owner of record must prove that: 1) at the time and date of the attempted stop, as described in the police officer's report, the described vehicle was not operated within the village of Milan; or 2) at the time and date of the attempted stop, the vehicle had been reported stolen; or 3) the license information described in the report does not match the listed make of the described vehicle. If the owner of record prevails, the notice of intent to impound the owner's vehicle shall be withdrawn, and the vehicle shall not be eligible for impoundment under this section. (Ord. 1208, 6-19-2000)
F. Eligibility For Impoundment: If the vehicle owner receives a notice pursuant to subsection D of this section and: 1) fails to contest eligibility under subsection E of this section; or 2) does not prevail in the contest of eligibility, the vehicle described in the notice shall be eligible for impoundment if found on the public way, or within a parking lot under village ordinance control, or in a parking lot open to the general public, or in a parking lot on the public way of another municipality with whom the village has an intergovernmental agreement to provide assistance in conjunction with an incident involving multijurisdictional problems within twelve (12) months following the conclusion, if a contest was requested, or following the last date to request a contest if none was requested. (Ord. 1210, 7-3-2000)
G. Administrative Penalty And Costs: The owner of a vehicle impounded under this section shall be subject to an administrative penalty of five hundred dollars ($500.00), plus the cost of towing and storage of the vehicle. (Ord. 1208, 6-19-2000)