(a) Village custody of lost, abandoned, or seized property.
(1) Property which appears to be lost or abandoned, discovered by officers, or turned in to the Police Department by citizens, or turned in to the Police Department by other village employees or departments, shall be disposed of according to this section.
(2) Property seized by the Police Department pursuant to a search warrant or seized without a search warrant shall be disposed of according to this section, including any obsolete evidence.
(3) All property covered by this section will be examined by the Police Department for identifying marks in an attempt to determine the owner, if the owner is not otherwise known. If identifying marks are present and the Police Department is reasonably able to determine who the owner may be through such identifying marks, the Police Department shall make reasonable efforts to notify the owner that the property is in the custody of the Police Department and may be claimed by contacting the Police Department and providing sufficient proof of ownership, except that property specified in subsections (b)(1) and (b)(2) below shall be disposed of as provided in those subsections. If no claim for ownership is made within 30 days of the date of such notice, the property shall be disposed of according to this section. If no identifying marks are present or the Police Department is unable to reasonably determine who the owner may be, the property shall be taken into custody by the Police Department and disposed of according to this section.
(4) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, no village employee shall keep for his or her own use property found in the course of duty or take possession of property during off-duty hours when the discovery was made while on duty.
(5) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, no village employee shall receive any lost, stolen, abandoned, or other unclaimed property from the Police Department, unless that person receives a written receipt signed by the Chief of Police, a copy of which shall remain with the Village Clerk.
(6) The Chief of Police shall permit citizens to claim lost or abandoned property if they can provide sufficient proof that they are rightful owners.
(b) Disposal procedures. Each class of abandoned, lost, or seized property shall be disposed of as follows.
(1) Firearms and ammunition. If a firearm or ammunition is not required for evidence or use in further investigation and has not been disposed of pursuant to a court order at the completion of a criminal action or proceeding, the firearm or ammunition may be returned to the rightful owner, except that the firearm or ammunition shall not be returned to any person who committed a crime or ordinance violation under this code involving the use of the firearm or ammunition, and the firearm or ammunition shall not be returned to the owner if he or she had prior knowledge of and gave consent to the commission of a crime. In this section, CRIME includes an act committed by a juvenile or incompetent adult which would have been a crime if the act had been committed by a competent adult.
a. If a firearm or ammunition was seized pursuant to a warrant or seized without a warrant in a criminal action, investigation, or proceeding, the Police Department shall make reasonable efforts to notify all persons who have or may have an authorized, rightful ownership interest in the firearm or ammunition that any person claiming the right to possession of the firearm or ammunition may, within 30 days of the date of such notice, apply for its return to the circuit court for the county in which the firearm or ammunition was seized or where the search warrant was returned, pursuant to Wis. Stats. § 968.20. If, within 30 days after such notice, an application under Wis. Stats. § 968.20, is not made, the seized firearm or ammunition shall be shipped to and become the property of the State Crime Laboratory.
b. In all other cases, the Police Department shall make reasonable efforts to notify the rightful owner of the firearm or ammunition that the owner may apply for the return of the firearm or ammunition by contacting the Village Police Department within 30 days of such notice and providing sufficient proof of ownership. If the rightful owner fails to contact the Police Department within 30 days of such notice or fails to provide sufficient proof of ownership, the firearm or ammunition shall be shipped to and become the property of the State Crime Laboratories.
(2) Illegal or contraband property. Property which cannot be legally possessed shall be destroyed.
(3) Other classes of property. All other property which has been seized by the Police Department pursuant to a search warrant or without a search warrant, abandoned, lost, or remained unclaimed for a period of 30 days after the taking of possession of the same by the village shall be disposed of as follows, except that if the property is usable for village operations, the property need not be sold at auction but may become the property of the village, and except that the Village Board, in its discretion, may allow the finder of any lost property to retain a portion of that property.
a. Vehicles. Vehicles shall be disposed of as set forth in the applicable provisions of Title 10, Chapter 5, of the code.
b. Intoxicating liquor and fermented malt beverages. Intoxicating liquor and fermented malt beverages shall be destroyed.
c. Explosives, flammable, or other material proving a danger to life or property. Any explosive, flammable, or other material proving a danger to life or property may be disposed of immediately upon taking possession thereof. The Chief of Police and the Fire Chief are hereby authorized to determine the disposal procedure; provided, however, that any such procedure will attempt to return to its rightful owner any such material which appears to have been stolen and which has a commercial value in normal business and does not pose an immediate threat to life or property.
d. Property with a fair market value of $100 or less. An item of property with a fair market value of $100 or less may be disposed of by the Chief of Police, or the department head responsible for the item, by donation to a non-profit organization or to a governmental agency; public auction; sale by sealed bid; or negotiated sale. Perishable property which deteriorates to a fair market value of less than $100 shall be destroyed.
e. Property with a fair market value of over $100. An item of property with a fair market value of more than $100 shall be sold at public auction or by sealed bid.
f. Village Treasury. Cash or other money shall be paid into the Village Treasury, if, after posting notice in two locations in the village for two weeks, no person has made a bona fide claim to the cash. The determination of whether a claim is bona fide shall be in the sole discretion of the Chief of Police. If the Chief of Police determines that a claim is bona fide, the cash shall be repaid to the claimant.
(c) Disposal by auction or sealed bid.
(1) Whenever any property under this section is sold by public auction or sale by sealed bid, such auction or the awarding of bids shall be preceded by a Class 2 notice describing the property and arranging the time and place for the auction or bid submission; such notice shall be published in the official village newspaper. The property auctioned or sold by sealed bid shall be sold in an “as is” condition to the highest bidder. No sale or auction shall occur until the Chief of Police has determined that the property has no value to any probable investigation or legal proceeding. The department head responsible for the property shall determine the time in which the successful bidder shall remove the property. In the event the property is not removed within that time, the property shall revert to the village and the amount of the bid be forfeited to the village. Any village official selling property under this Section shall maintain for two years an inventory of any property not disposed of by auction or sale by sealed bid and shall include a record of the date and method of disposal, any payment received for the property, and the name and address of the person acquiring the property.
(2) All sums received from the sale of property under this section shall be paid to the Village Treasury.
(Ord. passed - -)