[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Board of the Village of
Belleville as Title 5, Ch. 4, of the 1994 Code. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "Village of Belleville Alarm
Systems Ordinance."
The purpose of this chapter is to provide minimum standards
and regulations applicable to burglar, fire and holdup alarm systems,
alarm companies and alarm users. Both society in general and public
safety in particular will be aided by providing a useful and usable
system of private security which properly balances quick response
by law enforcement with minimization of law enforcement time spent
on alarms which are false or otherwise not the intended function of
private security systems.
Within this chapter, the following terms, phrases and words
and their derivations have the meaning given herein:
Any business in which the owners or employees engage in the
activity of altering, installing, leasing, maintaining, repairing,
replacing, selling, or servicing alarm systems.[1]
An assembly of equipment and devices or a single device to
signal the presence of a hazard requiring urgent attention and to
which the Police or Fire Department is expected to respond. In this
chapter, the term "alarm system" shall include the terms "automatic
holdup alarm system," "burglar alarm system," and "manual holdup alarm
system," as those terms are hereinafter defined, and fire alarm systems
which monitor temperature, humidity or any other condition directly
related to the detection of fire. Excluded from this definition and
from the coverage of this chapter are alarm systems used to alert
or signal persons within the premises in which the alarm system is
located of an attempted unauthorized intrusion or holdup attempt or
fire.
[Amended 4-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-04-01[2]]
The instrumentation of an alarm console at the receiving
terminal of a signal line through which both visual and audible signals
show when an alarm device at a particular location has been activated
or which, in the event of malfunction, may also indicate line trouble.
A telephone answering service providing among its services
the service of receiving on a continuous basis through trained employees
emergency signals from alarm systems and thereafter immediately relaying
the message by live voice to the dispatch center of the Police or
Fire Department.
An alarm system which automatically sends over regular telephone
lines by direct connection or otherwise a prerecorded voice message
or coded signal indicating the existence of the emergency situation
that the alarm system is designed to detect.
An alarm system in which the signal transmission is initiated
by the direct action of the robber.
An alarm system which signals an entry or attempted entry
into the area protected by the system.
An office to which remote alarm and supervisory signaling
devices are connected, where operators supervise the circuits.
An alarm system which has the capability of transmitting
system signals to the Police or Fire Department.
The activation of an alarm system through mechanical failure,
malfunction, improper installation or the negligence of the owner
or lessee of an alarm system or of his or her employees or agents
or other undetermined cause. "False alarm" does not include alarms
caused by tornadoes or other violent climatic conditions.
To connect an alarm system to a voice-grade telephone line,
either directly or through a mechanical device that utilizes a standard
telephone, for the purpose of using the telephone line to transmit
an emergency message upon the activation of the alarm system.
An alarm system in which the signal transmission is initiated
by the direct action of the person attacked or by an observer thereof.
A telephone line leading directly into the dispatch center
of the Police or Fire Department that is for the purpose of handling
emergency calls on a person-to-person basis and which is identified
as such by a specific number included among the emergency numbers
listed in the telephone directory or numbers in sequence therewith.
A person who buys or leases or otherwise obtains an alarm
system and thereafter contracts with or hires an alarm company to
monitor and/or service the alarm system.[3]
[Added 4-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-04-01[1]]
All audible alarm systems shall be equipped with a minimum twenty-second
time delay in case the alarm is accidentally tripped. All audible
alarms shall be equipped with a fifteen-minute automatic shutoff or
some other secure method of turning off the alarm.
A.
No person shall interconnect any automatic dialing device to a Police
or Fire Department primary trunk line. No person shall permit such
devices which were installed prior to the effective date of this chapter
to remain interconnected from any property owned or controlled by
that person. Such devices may be connected to a central station or
an answering service. Relaying messages so received to the Police
or Fire Department shall only be done person to person on the telephone
line.
B.
The Belleville Public Works Department may use or cause to be used
any telephone or electronic device or attachment that automatically
selects the public telephone trunk line of the Police or Fire Department
or any other department of the Village of Belleville which reproduces
a prerecorded message to report a problem within the water or sanitary
sewer system.
[Added 4-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-04-01]
Direct connections to the Police or Fire Department are prohibited
but may be authorized pursuant to the direct connection policies of
each Department, a copy of which is on file with the Chief of Police
and Fire Chief.
A.
No alarm company or alarm system designed to transmit emergency messages
to the Police Department shall be tested or demonstrated without prior
notification and approval of the Police Department. Alarm companies
or alarm system owners or lessees will be advised on proper test procedure.
[Amended 4-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-04-01]
B.
Alarm systems shall be in compliance with all pertinent response
policies of the Police Department.
[Amended 4-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-04-01]
When the service provided by an alarm company to its subscribers
is disrupted for any reason by the alarm company or the alarm company
becomes aware of such disruption, it shall promptly notify its subscribers
by telephone that protection is no longer being provided. If, however,
the alarm company has written instructions from its subscriber not
to make such notification by telephone during certain hours, the alarm
company may comply with such instructions.
A.
Generally. Each false alarm requires the response of public safety
personnel, involves unnecessary expense to the Village, increases
the risk of injury to persons or damage to property and dilutes the
overall public safety protection to the Village. Such false alarms
constitute a public nuisance and must be abated.
C.
Administrative charges.
[Amended 4-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-04-01]
(1)
Any person, business, corporation or other entity having a permissible
alarm system with alarm device(s) at one or more locations in accordance
with this chapter shall pay to the Village a charge for false alarms
responded to by the Police or Fire Department per the Municipal Court
Deposit Schedule for each twelve-month period for each location. Separate
accounts shall be kept for false alarms as to criminal activity and
false alarms for fire or other emergencies.
(2)
This subsection is intended to impose a strict liability on the person, business, corporation or other entity responsible for alarm connection to either the police alarm panel or an alarm receiving firm to which the Police or Fire Department has responded and shall be applied regardless of the cause of the false alarm, excepting those alarms excluded from the definition of "false alarm." Failure to pay such administrative charge(s) in and of itself shall constitute a violation of this section, and such charge(s) shall be collectible as a forfeiture upon prosecution and conviction thereof, together with an additional forfeiture(s) which may be imposed under Subsection D hereof for violation of this section for allowing or maintaining a condition(s) or act(s) violating the intent of this section of eliminating and minimizing the occurrence of false alarms, together with costs of prosecution.
D.
Other violations. Any person, corporation or other entity violating this chapter in any manner, other than for collection of unpaid administrative charges treated in the preceding Subsection C of this section, shall be subject to forfeiture as provided in § 1-4 of this Code. When any premises located in the Village is owned, leased or occupied by two or more persons as joint tenants, tenants in common, joint lessees, or in any other manner, each person shall see that the provisions of this chapter are complied with, and each person may be subjected to a penalty on violation of this section.
The Village of Belleville shall be under no duty or obligation
to a subscriber or to any other person concerning any provision of
this chapter, including but not limited to any defects in an alarm
system or any delays in transmission of or response to any alarm;
however, this in no way shall be construed that it is not the proper
function of law enforcement to respond to alarms.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original Sec. 5-4-11, Private alarm system
permit, and Sec. 5-4-12, Revocation of permits, which immediately
followed this section, were repealed 4-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-04-01.
