§ 98-66. Liability of vehicle owner for illegal parking.

(a)

The city commission hereby finds and declares:

(1)

The city is desirous of providing maximum safety and convenience for all persons who use the streets, highways, alleys and motor vehicle parking areas in the city.

(2)

An acute problem has developed in the city because of the legal difficulty experienced in the enforcement of parking ordinances against either the operator or owner of a vehicle, and as a result, parking ordinances of the city are being ignored with impunity which encourages further disrespect for all the laws and legal processes of the city.

(3)

It is impractical, and in most cases impossible, to ascertain and establish the identity of a driver of a motor vehicle which has been left illegally parked, and unless the registered owner of the vehicle is held responsible for such illegal parking, the parking ordinances of the city will continue to be unenforceable and ignored.

(4)

The continued violation of parking ordinances of the city constitutes a public nuisance and in each instance is a trespass on the rights of the public generally and immediate action is required to correct these problems.

(5)

The city has the power to regulate, limit, restrict and prohibit the privilege of parking on the streets, highways, alleys, parking lots and other areas open to and used by vehicular traffic in the city.

(6)

The city provides many benefits for motor vehicles and expends considerable public funds which benefits the owner of the vehicles.

(7)

The legislature, in enacting F.S. ch. 318, intended to decriminalize certain traffic violations thereby facilitating the implementation of a more uniform and expeditious system for the disposition of traffic offenses.

(b)

Any and all violations of this section relating to the parking of vehicles are hereby declared to be a public nuisance and trespass.

(c)

In any prosecution involving a violation of any of the parking regulations specified in this section, the registered owner of a motor vehicle when the vehicle is parked or left standing in violation of the regulations is hereby declared to be directly responsible to the city for the payment of the fine for the vehicle being so parked or left standing. The term "registered owner" means the person or entity who is lawfully registered with the state department of highway safety and motor vehicles as provided by state law on the day the violation occurs.

(d)

When any law enforcement officer or traffic enforcement technician finds a vehicle parked in violation of any of the parking regulations specified in this section:

(1)

The officer shall issue a notice of violation to the vehicle and shall place the notice in a conspicuous place on the vehicle. The notification form shall contain language informing the registered owner of the vehicle which section of this chapter has been violated; of the procedures available to the registered owner under this section; of the administrative fee which the registered owner may pay to avoid citation for a noncriminal traffic infraction for the violation; and of the potential civil penalty provided in F.S. ch. 318, for such noncriminal infraction.

(2)

If the administrative fee as provided for in this section is not paid within 72 hours, the police department or its designee shall mail a copy of the notice of violation together with the information specified in subsection (d)(1) of this section to the registered owner of the vehicle informing the owner that an additional delinquency fee as provided by the city commission by resolution has been assessed for the violation. The registered owner is directed to pay the administrative fee and the delinquency fee within ten days.

a.

Any person who fails to respond to the original parking violation notice within the time period specified shall be deemed to have waived the right to contest the merits of such parking violation, except as provided in this section.

b.

The city clerk may waive the specified administrative fee, after receipt of an affidavit of explanation, under the following circumstances:

1.

Malfunctioning meter.

2.

Valid and verifiable emergencies.

3.

Government employees on official business, verified by a supervisor.

4.

City volunteers actually detained because of their volunteer duties, as verified by volunteer coordinator.

5.

Error in the issuance of the citation when an affidavit of explanation is filed, and the chief of police determines that no parking infraction proceeding should issue.

(3)

If the specified administrative fee and the delinquency fee are not paid within ten calendar days after the date the notice is mailed, the police department or its designee shall mail a second notice of violation to the registered owner with an additional delinquency fee as provided by the city commission by resolution assessed in addition to the fees described in subsection (d)(2) of this section. If the total administrative and delinquent fees are not paid within ten calendar days, the entire administrative fee and delinquent fees owed, including any and all collection costs, and the citation shall be referred to the special magistrate for hearing.

The term "court" shall be construed to mean "special magistrate."

(4)

The administrative fees provided for violations of any of the parking regulations specified in this section shall be as provided by the city commission by resolution.

(e)

At any hearing of the case involving illegal parking in which the owner of the motor vehicle is being tried under this chapter, it shall be sufficient evidence on which the court may rely to establish the name of the registered owner of such vehicle if a police officer, police service technician, or traffic enforcement technician of the city shall state under oath that he has made inquiry of the state department of highway safety and motor vehicles and has been advised by it of the identity of the registered owner. However, if the person on trial denies that he is the registered owner, and such fact cannot be otherwise established, the court may defer the final determination of the case until a certified record or appropriate certificate can be obtained from the office of the department of highway safety and motor vehicles showing the record in that office on the date in question.

(f)

At any hearing of a case involving illegal parking in which the owner of the motor vehicle is being tried under this chapter, the judge may, in his discretion, allow any person, whether the registered owner or not, to testify or otherwise give evidence if the person admits under oath or affirmation to have parked the vehicle at the time and place of the alleged offense.

(g)

Any person cited for violation of this section or of the sections specified in this section shall be deemed to be charged with a noncriminal infraction and shall be cited for such an infraction and cited to appear before an official. The procedures and civil penalties provided in F.S. ch. 318 shall apply as closely as is possible in handling the infractions. Each day any violation occurs or continues shall constitute a separate offense. For overtime parking in a space, each succeeding equal time period beyond that authorized as the maximum time period for the parking space shall constitute a separate offense.

(h)

The clerk of the court or the traffic violations bureau shall supply the state department of highway safety and motor vehicles (department) with the magnetically encoded computer tape reel or cartridge which is machine readable by the installed computer system at the department, listing persons who have three or more outstanding parking violations. The department shall mark the appropriate registration records of persons so reported. The tax collector and the clerk of court shall each be entitled to receive costs reimbursement pursuant to F.S. § 320.03(8).

(Code 1992, § 13-66; Ord. No. 372-A, § 2, 10-3-1995; Ord. No. 2014-0704, § 11, 3-18-2014;, eff. 5-1-2014 )