Chapter 2-8
UNCLAIMED PROPERTY
Sections:
2-8-01 Found property delivered to the Police Department.
2-8-02 Owners may claim property or money.
2-8-03 Finders may reclaim property or money.
2-8-04 Disposition of unclaimed money and property.
2-8-05 Interpretation of provisions.
2-8-06 Application of provisions.
2-8-07 Unclaimed personal property found on public property.
2-8-01 Found property delivered to the Police Department.
Any found property, other than livestock, other living creatures, or articles of a perishable nature, shall be placed in the possession of the Police Department. The Police Chief shall make provisions for receiving and safekeeping found property and found money delivered to the Police Department. A receipt shall be issued to the person delivering such property or such money to the Police Department.
(289-CS, Amended, 06/16/1977; 218-CS, Rep&ReEn, 04/17/1975)
2-8-02 Owners may claim property or money.
During such time as any such property or money is so held, it may be delivered or paid to the owner. Such property or money shall be delivered upon proof of ownership satisfactory to the Police Chief after ten (10) days' notice by mail to any others who have asserted a claim of ownership at any address given by such persons. If ownership cannot be determined to the satisfaction of the Police Chief, he may refuse to deliver such property or money to anyone until ordered to do so by a court.
(289-CS, Amended, 06/16/1977; 218-CS, Rep&ReEn, 04/17/1975)
2-8-03 Finders may reclaim property or money.
If the owner does not appear during the time such property or money is so held and claim the property or money, it may be delivered to the finder, other than a City employee who found the same while performing his regular duties, if at the time such property or money is delivered to the Police Department the finder has signed a statement indicating whether such finder wishes to claim such property or money if the owner does not claim it. It shall be the sole responsibility of the finder to contact the City within fourteen (14) days after the expiration of a four (4) month period to claim such property, and the finder shall remove such property from the City within said fourteen (14) days or such longer period of time as agreed by the Police Chief in writing.
(289-CS, Amended, 06/16/1977; 218-CS, Rep&ReEn, 04/17/1975)
2-8-04 Disposition of unclaimed money and property.
All unclaimed money received by the Police Department and not returned to the finder or owner shall be paid into the General Fund of the City. All unclaimed property not returned to the finder or owner shall be transferred to the Purchasing Department. If such property is determined by the Purchasing Department to be needed for a public use, such property may be retained by the City. All other property shall be sold at public auction to the highest bidder, with a notice of such sale being given by the Purchasing Department at least five (5) days before the time fixed therefor by publication once in a newspaper of general circulation published in the County. Property which cannot be sold at auction may be destroyed or disposed of as the Purchasing department shall determine. The provisions of this section shall apply to property found or saved on property subject to the City's jurisdiction.
(289-CS, Amended, 06/16/1977; 218-CS, Rep&ReEn, 04/17/1975)
2-8-05 Interpretation of provisions.
The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed as repealing any law of the City relating to the impounding of dogs or other animals, nor as preventing the City from resorting to the laws of the State relating to stray animals or to the finding of personal property, nor as preventing the Police Department or any other department of the City from destroying any personal property having no sale value, either summarily or after such notice as the City may deem reasonable under the circumstances.
(218-CS, Rep&ReEn, 04/17/1975)
2-8-06 Application of provisions.
The provisions of this chapter shall not be deemed to apply to property or money subject to confiscation under the laws of the State or of the United States of America, and shall apply to property or money held as evidence only when the same is unclaimed by any person and no other provisions of law are applicable concerning its disposition.
(218-CS, Rep&ReEn, 04/17/1975)
2-8-07 Unclaimed personal property found on public property.
(a) Whenever unclaimed property with value, which does not bear any identification of the owner on it, is found discovered or recovered on City property by City employees in the course of their employment same shall be collected and deposited with the Police Department.
(b) Whenever the personal property referenced in Section 2-8-07(a) and held by the police department shall accumulate to the point where the Chief of Police desires to dispose of the same, it may be sold after complying with the provisions of Section 2080.4 of the California Civil Code as the same now exists or may hereafter be amended, and provisions of this section shall not prevail insofar as they may be inconsistent with state statutes.
(c) Such property must be held by the police department for at least three (3) months. After property has been held for the period prescribed above and accumulations are deemed adequate in number of items for the conduct of an auction, the property may be transferred to the Purchasing Division of the General Services Department for sale to the public at public auction. Notice of such auction sale will be given by the Purchasing Agent at least (5) days before the time fixed thereof or by publication once, in the newspaper publishing city legal notices.
(d) After said notices are given, the sale shall be conducted by the Purchasing Agent, or his or her designee, with the approval of the City Manager, or by an employed professional auctioneer. Property for which no bid is made at such sale may be given to a nonprofit charitable organization or destroyed as the Purchasing Agent may direct.
(e) If the Purchasing Agent determines that unclaimed property transferred to his or her jurisdiction for sale is needed for a public use, he or she may retain such property and dispense with the provisions of this section pertaining to sale. The Purchasing Agent shall thereafter account for such property as though it had been acquired by the City through regular purchasing procedures, with the exception that accountability for the use and disposition of unclaimed property transferred back to the police department for official police purposes shall become the responsibility of the Chief of Police.
(f) If the owner of the personal property is identified and given written notice that the City of Turlock has retrieved and is storing said personal property, then the owner may claim said property prior to the publication date of intended sale by appearing before the Chief of Police and proving his or her ownership. If the personal property, excluding money, has an estimated value of Fifty and no/100ths ($50.00) Dollars or greater and the owner has proven ownership to the Chief of Police, the City may charge the owner the reasonable costs of retrieval and storage prior to release of said personal property.
(g) Personal property with a value of not more Five Hundred ($500.00) and no/100ths Dollars in the possession of the Police Department which has been unclaimed for a period of at least ninety (90) days may, instead of being sold at public auction to the highest bidder, be donated to the Stanislaus County Probation Department, Stanislaus County Welfare Department, or to any charitable organization which is authorized under its articles of incorporation to participate in a program or activity designed to prevent juvenile delinquency and which is exempt from income taxation under federal or state law, or both, for use in any program or activity designed to prevent juvenile delinquency.
(Ord. 1030-CS, Amended, 07/08/2004; 752-CS, Enacted, 10/10/1991)