(a) Intent. The Police Alarm Ordinance is intended to be a regulatory ordinance in the public's health, safety and welfare for the protection of all citizens. The intent of this chapter is to establish reasonable expectations of alarm users and to ensure that alarm users are held responsible for their use of alarms systems.
(b) Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings ascribed to them, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
(1) “Alarm Administrator” means a person or persons designated by the City to administer, control and review false alarm reduction efforts and administer the provisions of this chapter.
(2) “Alarm company” means a person and/or company subject to licensing or registration requirements as specified below for an entity engaged in selling, leasing, installing, servicing or monitoring electronic security alarm system(s). The applicable Michigan statutes for an electronic security alarm entity are as follows:
A. PA 330 1968; and
B. PA 580 2012.
(3) “Alarm signal” means a detectable signal; audible or visual, generated by an alarm system, to which law enforcement is requested to respond.
(4) “Alarm system” means any single device or assembly of equipment designed to signal the occurrence of an illegal or unauthorized entry or other illegal activity requiring immediate attention and to which law enforcement is requested to respond, but does not include motor vehicle or boat alarms, fire alarms, domestic violence alarms, or alarms designed to elicit a medical response.
(5) “Alarm user” means any person, corporation, partnership, proprietorship, governmental or educational entity or any other entity owning, leasing or operating an alarm system, or on whose premises an alarm system is maintained for the protection of such premises.
(6) “Automatic dial protection device” means an automatic dialing device or an automatic telephone dialing alarm system and shall include any system which, upon being activated, automatically initiates to the Police Department a recorded message or code signal indicating a new for law enforcement response.
(7) “Cancellation” means the process where response is terminated when the alarm company designated by the alarm user notifies the Police Department that there is not an existing situation at the alarm site requiring police response after an alarm dispatch request. If cancellation occurs prior to police arriving at the scene, this is not a false alarm for the purpose of a civil penalty, and no penalty will be assessed.
(8) “City” means the City of Wayne or its agent.
(9) “False alarm” means the activation of an alarm system through mechanical or electronic failure, malfunction, improper installation, or the negligence of the alarm user, his/her employees or agents, and signals activated to summon law enforcement personnel unless law enforcement response was cancelled by the user's alarm company before law enforcement personnel arrive at the alarm location. An alarm is false within the meaning of this article when, upon inspection by the Police Department, evidence indicates that no unauthorized entry, robbery, or other such crime was committed or attempted in or on the premises which would have activated a properly functioning alarm system. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a false alarm shall not include an alarm which can reasonably be determined to have been caused or activated by unusually violent conditions of nature nor does it include other extraordinary circumstances not reasonably subject to control by the alarm user.
(10) “Local alarm” means an alarm system that emits a signal at an alarm site that is audible or visible from the exterior of a structure and is not monitored by a remote monitoring facility, whether installed by an alarm company or user.
(11) “One-year period” means 12 consecutive months beginning on January 31st and ending December 31st of the same calendar year.
(12) “Person” means any person, corporation, partnership, proprietorship, governmental or educational entity or any other entity.
(13) “Police Department” means the Wayne Police Department or its agent.
(14) “Runaway alarm” means an electronic security alarm system that produces repeated alarm signals that do not appear to be caused by separate human action. The Police Department may, in its discretion, discontinue police response to alarm signals from what appear to be a runaway alarm in excess of three alarm activations per 24-hour arming period.
(15) “SIA Control Panel Standard CP-01" means the American National Standard Institute (ANSI) approved Security Industry Association (SIA) CP-01 Control Panel Standard, as may be updated from time to time, that details recommended design features for security system control panels and their associated arming and disarming devices to reduce false alarms. Control panels built and tested to this standard by a nationally recognized testing organization, will be marked to state: "Design evaluated in accordance with SIA CP-01 Control Panel Standard Features for False Alarm Reduction".
(16) “Verify” means an attempt by the monitoring company, or its representative, to contact the alarm site and/or alarm user by telephone and/or other electronic means, whether or not actual contact with a person is made, to attempt to determine whether an alarm signal is valid before requesting law enforcement dispatch, in an attempt to avoid an unnecessary alarm dispatch request. For the purpose of this chapter, telephone verification shall require, as a minimum that a second call be made to a different number if the first attempt fails to reach an alarm user who can properly identify themselves to attempt to determine whether an alarm signal is valid before requesting law enforcement dispatch.
(Ord. 2017-04. Passed 11-7-17.)