[Added 3-14-2012 by Ord. No. 1655]
A. 
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 39:4-139.13, as amended and supplemented, the Police Department is hereby authorized to impound or immobilize any vehicle found within the Borough of Glen Rock in the event that there is an outstanding warrant issued against the vehicle.
B. 
Except for vehicles owned by lessors who have complied with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 39:4-139.5, as amended and supplemented, if the outstanding warrants(s) are not paid by 12:00 midnight on the 30th day following the day on which the vehicle was impounded or immobilized, the vehicle may be sold at a public auction. The Police Department shall give notice of the sale by certified mail to the owner, if the name and address are known, and to the holder of any security interest filed with the Director and by publication in a form to be prescribed by the Director by one insertion, at least five days before the date of the sale, in one or more newspapers published in this state and circulating in the Borough of Glen Rock.
C. 
At any time prior to the sale, the owner of the motor vehicle or other person entitled to the motor vehicle may claim possession of the motor vehicle upon payment of the reasonable costs of removal and storage of the motor vehicle, any fine or penalty and court costs assessed against him for a violation that gave rise to the impoundment or immobilization of the motor vehicle and any outstanding warrants against the vehicle; however, the owner-lessor of a motor vehicle who has complied with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 39:4-139.5, as amended and supplemented, shall be entitled to reclaim possession without payment, and the lessee shall be liable to any fine, penalty, court costs and outstanding warrants against the vehicle.
D. 
Any proceeds obtained from the sale of a vehicle at a public auction pursuant to this section in excess of the amount owed to the Borough for the reasonable costs of removal and storage of the motor vehicle, any fine or penalty and court costs assessed for any violation that gave rise to the impoundment or immobilization of the vehicle and any outstanding warrants against the vehicle shall be returned to the owner of the vehicle, if his name and address are known.
A. 
Right to hearing. As to any vehicle impounded pursuant to the Glen Rock Code or to state statutes, by or at the request of the Borough of Glen Rock, its agents or employees, a person who has a legal entitlement to possession of the vehicle has a right to a post-seizure administrative hearing to determine whether there was probable cause to impound the vehicle, if such person files a written demand with the Borough Administrator within the 10 days after such person has learned such vehicle has been impounded or within 10 days after the mailing of the notice of stored vehicle, whichever occurs first. The notice of stored vehicle shall be sent in the mail to the legal and registered owner and to the garage where the vehicle is stored within 48 hours, excluding weekends and holidays, after impounding and storage of the vehicle.
B. 
Conduct of the hearing. A hearing shall be conducted before a hearing officer designated by the Borough Administrator within 48 hours of receipt of a written demand therefor from the person seeking the hearing, unless such person waives the right to a speedy hearing. Saturdays, Sundays and state holidays are to be excluded from the calculation of the forty-eight-hour period. The hearing officer shall be someone other than the person who directed the impounding and storage of the vehicle. The sole question before the hearing officer shall be whether there was probable cause to impound the vehicle in question. The phrase "probable cause to impound" shall mean such a state of facts as would lead a person of ordinary care and prudence to believe that there was sufficient breach of local, state or federal law to grant legal authority for the removal of the vehicle.
C. 
Hearing rocedure. The hearing officer shall conduct the hearing in an informal manner and shall not be bound by technical rules of evidence. The person demanding the hearing shall carry the burden of establishing that such person has the right to possession of the vehicle. The Borough shall carry the burden of establishing that there was probable cause to impound the vehicle in question. At the conclusion of the hearing, the hearing officer shall prepare a written decision. A copy of such decision shall be provided to the person demanding the hearing and the registered owner of the vehicle (if not the person requesting the hearing). The hearing officer's decision in no way affects any criminal or motor vehicle proceeding in connection with the impounding question, and any criminal or motor vehicle charges involved in such proceeding may only be challenged in the appropriate court. The decision of the hearing officer is final. Failure of the registered or legal owner or his agent to request a hearing within the provisions of this section or to attend a scheduled post-seizure hearing shall be deemed a waiver of the right to such hearing.
D. 
Decisions of the hearing officers and their effect. The hearing officer shall only determine that, as to the vehicle in issue, either there was probable cause to impound the vehicle or there was no such probable cause. In the event that the hearing officer determines that there was no probable cause, the hearing officer shall prepare and date a certificate of no probable cause, copies of which shall be given to the possessor (owner or other person entitled to possession) of the vehicle and the Borough. Upon receipt of the possessor's copy of such certificate, the custodian, towing company, or such, of the vehicle shall release the vehicle to its possessor. Upon a finding of no probable cause, towing and storage fees shall be paid by the Borough. If the possessor fails to present such certificate to the person having custody of the vehicle within 24 hours of its receipt, excluding such days when the custodian of the vehicle is not open for business, the possessor shall assume liability for all subsequent storage charges. Such certificate shall advise the possessor of such requirement.