Alarm Ordinance
Last year the Police Department answered several thousand false
burglar alarms. Police officers assigned to those priority calls
must respond as if they are valid "in progress" felonies.
Because of the high potential for violence, a minimum of two police
units are assigned to respond.
Each time police units respond to an alarm, their patrol of
the remainder of the community and dispatch of other duties is
interrupted. Manpower costs, equipment use, and vehicle wear
associated with each call are significant, all of which make this an
expensive service. To cover increased costs for providing this
specialized service and to minimize the number of false police emergency alarms, the City Council
approved service charges for response to false burglar alarms.
These charges allow for three false alarms during any
twelve month period without charge. The fourth and fifth false alarms
are $50 each, the sixth through tenth are $100 each, and for each false
alarm in excess of ten a fee of $250 each will be assessed.
It is the City's hope that alarm holders will become
more aware of their responsibility to maintain their system in good
working condition and instruct the necessary individuals in its
proper use. This will, in turn, improve public service delivery to
the community.
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