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Any recipient of an administrative citation may contest that there was a violation of the Murrieta Municipal Code, or that he or she is the responsible person, by submitting a written request for a hearing, and returning it to the designated collector as noted on the citation, within thirty (30) days from the date of the issuance of the administration citation, together with an advanced deposit of the fine. Any administrative citation fine which has been deposited shall be refunded if it is determined, after a hearing, that the person charged in the administrative citation was not responsible for the violation(s) or that there was no violation(s) as charged in the administrative citation.
(Ord. 610-24 § 22, 2024; Ord. 207 § 2 (part), 1999)
The Murrieta city manager or police chief shall designate the hearing officer for the administrative citation hearing. The hearing officer shall not be a city employee. The employment, performance evaluation, compensation and benefits of the hearing officer, if any, shall not be directly or indirectly conditioned upon the amount of administrative citation fines upheld by the hearing officer.
(Ord. 207 § 2 (part), 1999)
A. No hearing to contest an administrative citation before a hearing officer shall be held unless and until a written request for a hearing has been submitted, and the fine has been deposited in advance.
B. A hearing before the hearing officer shall be set for a date that is not less than fifteen (15) and not more than sixty (60) days from the date that the request for hearing is filed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. The person requesting the hearing shall be notified of the time and place set for the hearing at least ten days prior to the date of the hearing.
C. The enforcement hearing officer shall only consider evidence that is relevant to whether the violation(s) occurred and whether the responsible person has caused or maintained the violation(s) of the municipal code or other applicable state code on the date(s) specified in the administrative citation.
D. The responsible person contesting the administrative citation shall be given the opportunity to testify and present witnesses and evidence concerning the administrative citation.
E. The failure of any recipient of an administrative citation to appear at the administrative citation hearing shall constitute a forfeiture of the fine and a failure to exhaust their administrative remedies.
F. The administrative citation and any additional documents submitted by the enforcement officer shall constitute prima facie evidence of the respective facts contained in those documents.
G. If the enforcement officer submits an additional written report concerning the administrative citation to the hearing officer for consideration at the hearing, then a copy of this report also shall be served by mail on the person requesting the hearing at least five days prior to the date of the hearing.
H. At least ten days prior to the hearing, the recipient of an administrative citation shall be provided with copies of the citations, reports and other documents submitted or relied upon by the enforcement officer. No other discovery is permitted. Formal rules of evidence shall not apply.
I. The hearing officer may continue the hearing and request additional information from the enforcement officer or the recipient of the administrative citation prior to issuing a written decision.
A. After considering all of the testimony and evidence submitted at the hearing, the hearing officer shall issue a written decision within ten days of the hearing to uphold or deny the administrative citation and shall list in the decision the reasons for that decision. The decision of the hearing officer shall be final.
B. If the hearing officer determines that the administrative citation should be upheld, then the fine amount on deposit with the city shall be retained by the city.
C. If the hearing officer determines that the administrative citation should be cancelled and the fine was deposited with the city, then the city shall refund the amount of the deposited fine per standard operating procedures established by the city.
D. The recipient of the administrative citation shall be served with a copy of the hearing officer's written decision in the manner prescribed by Section 1.26.090 of this code.
(Ord. 207 § 2 (part), 1999)
The failure of any person to pay the civil fines assessed by an administrative citation within the time specified on the citation may result in the matter being referred to the city to file a claim with the small claims court. Alternatively, the city may pursue any other legal remedy to collect the civil fines, including the appointment of a private collection agency, acting on behalf of the city, as its agent, to pursue and collect fines as determined by contract agreement and approved by the city council. The city may also recover its collection's costs, along with fines assessed, according to proof of attempts to collect the debt.
(Ord. 207 § 2 (part), 1999)
Any person aggrieved by an administrative decision of a hearing officer on an administrative citation may obtain review of the administrative decision by filing a petition for review with the Riverside County Three Lakes Municipal Court in accordance with the timeliness and provisions as set forth in California Government Code Section 53069.4.
(Ord. 207 § 2 (part), 1999)
A. The administration citation and all notices to be given by this chapter shall be served on the responsible person in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and Chapter 1.24 of this code, where applicable.
B. Failure to receive any notice specified in this chapter does not affect the validity of proceedings conducted hereunder.
(Ord. 207 § 2 (part), 1999)