(a) Definitions. For the purpose of this section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates, or requires, a different meaning.
POLICE. The Village Police Department.
REPEATED. More than two in any six-month period.
VILLAGE. The Village of Turtle Lake, Wisconsin.
(b) Legal justification. A call is “legally justified” or “legally justifiable” under this section if the call is to report a violation of an ordinance of the village or a violation of the statute of the state, which, upon investigation, results in the issuance of a municipal citation, arrest, and/or referral to either the Village Attorney or District Attorney for charging and prosecution.
(c) Repeated police calls.
(1) If any person in the village called the police more than once within a six-month period, the caller shall be liable for penalties provided below if:
a. The call or any calls are not legally justified;
b. The calls involve the same activity or the same alleged perpetrators and if the caller has reason to believe that the complaint regarding the activity or behavior is not legally justified; or
c. The caller has other recourse to avoid the activity or behavior which precipitates the call, and if the caller has reason to believe that the complaint regarding the activity or behavior is not legally justified.
(2) If any person in the village is the subject of repeated legally unjustifiable calls to the police, that person shall be liable for the penalties provided below.
(d) Penalty.
(1) Any person violating subsection (c)(1) above shall receive a citation upon the second unjustified call with a penalty of not less than $250, plus usual costs.
(2) Any person violating subsection (c)(1) above for a third time shall receive a citation for not less than $250 plus usual costs and shall, in addition, pay restitution to the village for the actual costs of the police response, but not less than $250.
(3) Any person violating subsection (c)(2) above shall, in addition to any citation issued for the offense, upon the third call within six months, be liable for restitution to the village for the actual cost of the police response, but not less than $100.
(Ord. 11-2-11, passed 10-25-2010)