Township of Lancaster, PA Alarm Systems

A communication to the fire, police or emergency services departments responsible for responding to alarms within the Township indicating that a fire, crime or other emergency warranting immediate action by fire, police or emergency services units has occurred or is occurring.

ALARM SYSTEM

Any assembly of equipment, mechanical, electrical or battery-operated, designed to automatically transmit an alarm directly to fire, police or emergency services departments responsible for responding to alarms within the Township or to a person that is instructed to notify such fire, police or emergency services department of the alarm.

FALSE ALARM

The activation of an alarm system to which fire, police or emergency services units respond when a fire, crime or other emergency has not occurred. Excluded from this definition are alarms caused by malfunctions of the Butler County Department of Emergency Services equipment if such alarm is directly connected to the 911 Dispatch Center; interruption of utility service caused outside the premises; testing or repairing of telephone or electric lines or equipment occurring outside the premises; acts of God, such as earthquakes, flood, windstorm, thunder or lightning; attempted illegal entry of which there is visible evidence; a crime in progress on the premises; automatic sprinkler activation or a fire on the premises; or an actual medical emergency requiring fire, police or emergency medical personnel.

TOWNSHIP

Lancaster Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania.

§ 89-2 Prohibition against false alarms.

It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership or corporation to make or cause to be made a false alarm, directly or indirectly, to any fire, police or emergency services department responsible for responding to alarms within the Township, whether the false alarm is caused by a faulty or malfunctioning alarm system or through inadvertence, negligence or willfulness of said person, partnership or corporation.

§ 89-3 Warnings and fines.

The Lancaster Township Chief of Police is responsible for determining whether an alarm qualifies as a false alarm under the definition of "false alarm" in § 89-1, above, and his decision shall be final.

After the determination is made that an alarm qualifies as a false alarm, the Chief of Police or, in his absence, the officer in charge shall, within five days of the false alarm, either send the responsible person, partnership or corporation a written warning by certified mail or cite and fine the responsible person, partnership or corporation for violating this article according to the following schedule:

[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]

(1)

First, second and third false alarm, in any one calendar year: warning.

(2)

Fourth false alarm in any one calendar year: $300 fine.

(3)

Fifth false alarm in any one calendar year: $300 fine.

(4)

Sixth and every subsequent false alarm in any one calendar year: $300 for each such false alarm.

§ 89-4 Remedies; violations and penalties.

Any person, partnership or corporation who or which violates any provision of this article or amendment thereto shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding, be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $300 and not more than $300, as set forth in § 89-3B, above, plus all court costs and reasonable attorney fees incurred by the Township in the enforcement proceedings. All fines, costs and fees collected shall be paid over to the Township Treasurer.

[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]

Nothing herein contained shall prevent the Township from taking such other lawful action as is necessary to prevent or remedy any violation, or to bring an action to enjoin any violation of this article.

§ 89-5 Severability.

If a final decision of a court of competent jurisdiction holds any provision, sentence, clause, section, or part of this article to be illegal or unconstitutional, such determination shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, clauses, sections or parts of this article which shall remain in full force and effect. It is hereby declared as the intent of the Township that the provisions, sentences, clauses, sections or parts of this article shall be severable and that this article would have been adopted if any such illegal or unconstitutional provision, sentence, clause, section, or part had not been included.