(A) A deferral program is established for deferring moving traffic violations. The city police shall, when issuing a ticket for such a violation, also deliver to that person a letter stating that they are or may be eligible for the deferral program and explain the elements of the program. Those elements are that the offender must pay a deferral fee plus costs to the Clerk of Daviess County. This letter given to those issued a ticket shall also state that if they commit no more offenses of that nature for 6 months, then the ticket against them will be dismissed, but if they commit another similar offense they will be fined for the original offense as well as the new offense and receive no credit for the deferral fee paid toward any fine or costs incurred. They must also sign a deferral agreement in the Office of the City Clerk-Treasurer.
(B) Pursuant to I.C. 34-28-5-1, the City Attorney may defer actions to enforce an ordinance if:
(1) The defendant in the action agrees to the conditions of the deferral program offered by the City Attorney.
(2) The defendant in the action agrees to pay to the Clerk of the Court an initial user’s fee and monthly user’s fee set by the City Attorney in accordance with I.C. 33-37-4-2(e).
(3) The terms of the agreement are recorded in an instrument signed by the defendant and the City Attorney.
(4) The defendant in the action agrees to pay a fee of $70 to the Clerk of the Court if the action involves a moving traffic offense (as defined in I.C. 9-13-2-110).
(5) The agreement is filed in the court in which the action is brought.
(6) Fees are to be paid in the following manner and amounts:
(a)
All items that may be deferred for a period of 6 months shall carry an initial deferral fee of $50 and the offender must pay an additional $10 for each month that it is deferred for a total of $110;
(b) All offenses which are now deferred for a period of 12 months shall carry an initial deferral fee of $50 and the offender must pay an additional $10 per month for each month it is deferred for a total of $170; and
(c) These fees are in addition to the court costs which as of August 24, 2015 are $87.50.
(Am. Ord. 12-2005, passed 7-25-2005)
(C) When a defendant complies with the terms of an agreement filed under this section the City Attorney shall request the court to dismiss the action.
(D) The fees generated by the deferral programs shall be paid to the Clerk of the Daviess Circuit and Superior Courts and the Clerk-Treasurer may, by claims process, request disbursement of those funds to which the city is entitled. The fees generated by the deferral programs and received by the Clerk-Treasurer shall be deposited into a special fund to be maintained by the Clerk-Treasurer and designated Deferral Program Fund which fund is, by the passage and adoption of this ordinance hereby, authorized and created.
(E) The Clerk-Treasurer shall periodically, upon the request of the Chief of Police or the City Attorney and with approval by the Council, disburse monies from the fund.
(F) The Police Department will use monies generated by the fund for equipment and for training schools, and the City Attorney will use the funds for seminars and municipal law publications and for payment when necessary of fees for outside counsel.
(Prior Code, § 34.05) (Ord. 9-98, passed 6-8-1998; Am. Ord. 1-2000, passed 2-14-2000; Am. Res., passed 12-27-2005; Am. Ord. 17-2008, passed 8-11-2008; Am. Ord. 7-2011, passed 7-11-2011; Am. Ord. 13-2012, passed 9-24-2012; Am. Ord. 17-2015, passed 8-24-2015)