By Ashley McLeod, Staff Writer
Jan 20, 2015, 12:18
PRINCE GEORGE — The Board of Supervisors voted last week on an ordinance that would change how the county handles reporting and disposing or shielding inoperable cars.
The current process of removing inoperable cars involves a criminal enforcement process. If a vehicle is found to be inoperable and not properly covered or hidden from sight, the owner of the vehicle would receive a warning from the police. If the vehicle is not removed or covered properly following the warning, police would issue a ticket, and a court date would be set.
This process of criminal enforcement takes up much of the officers’ time and does not usually get the inoperable vehicle out of sight. Offenders would go to court, and a fine would be imposed. This usually did not fix the problem and the vehicle remains untouched.
Last year, the General Assembly extended authority to Prince George and Hopewell to require that inoperable vehicle to be shielded from view or in an enclosed structure. The vehicles must be shielded either by a foliage barrier, fence, or a garage. Covering inoperable vehicles with a tarp or car cover is not an option, and the vehicle would be subject to being removed.
The ordinance, which was passed in a unanimous vote, will change the enforcement process from criminal to civil enforcement.
Under the new enforcement process, police will now serve the owner of the vehicle with a warning when the inoperable vehicle is found. The warning will give the vehicle owner 30 days to remove the vehicle from the property or shield it from public view. After the 30 days is up if the vehicle is still there, the county will now be allowed to remove the vehicle, which would be sent to the county’s impound lot. The county will then send another notice to the vehicle’s owner giving them 30 days to retrieve the vehicle from the impound lot. If the owner does not retrieve the vehicle within the 30-day period, the county would be allowed to dispose of it.
The new ordinance will also require the vehicle owner to pay for the cost of towing to the impound lot as well as the cost for the vehicle to stay in the lot.
The change in enforcement will allow police to spend less time on this issue and more time on other issues going on in the county. It will also save on court visits and court costs, as it would be settled outside of court.
