A. The city's police department may sell such property by public auction, in the manner and upon the notice of sale of personal property under execution, if it is a thing that is commonly the subject of sale, when the owner cannot, with reasonable diligence, be found, or, being found, refuses upon demand to pay the lawful charges as provided by law in the following cases: 1) when the thing is in danger of perishing, or of losing the greater value or part of its value, or 2) when the lawful charges provided by law amount to two-thirds (2/3) of its value.
B. Pursuant to California Welfare And Institutions Code section 217, any personal property with a value less than five hundred dollars ($500.00) in the possession of the city's police department which has been unclaimed for at least ninety (90) days may, instead of being sold at public auction to the highest bidder pursuant to the provisions of Civil Code section 2080.5, be donated to the county probation or welfare departments, or to any charitable or nonprofit organization that is authorized under its articles of incorporation to participate in a program or activity designed to prevent juvenile delinquency and which is exempt from income taxation under federal or state law, or both, for use in any program or activity designed to prevent juvenile delinquency.
C. Before any property subject to this section is donated to the county probation or welfare departments, or to any charitable or nonprofit organization, the city's police department shall notify the owner of the property, if his or her identity is known or can be reasonably ascertained, that the city possesses the property, and where the property may be claimed. The owner may be notified by mail, telephone, or by means of a notice published in a newspaper of general circulation which it determines is most likely to give notice to the owner of the property. If after notice and for a period of not less than ninety (90) days, the property is not claimed by the owner, the property may be disposed of as provided in this chapter.
D. Currency and coin, except mounted coin collections, shall be given into the custody of the city's treasurer in exchange for a receipt therefor. Mounted coin collections remaining unclaimed shall be disposed of by sealed bid at public auction, which bid shall exceed the current actual face value of the coins contained in the collection.
E. Such unclaimed property, as provided by law and this chapter, that may be retained and, if in the opinion of the city's chief of police, would assist the city's police department in carrying out its mission, may be retained and any such retained property shall be included in the assets of the city and entered into the inventory of the police department. (Ord. 2731, 2011: Ord. 2636 § 1, 2006)