The purpose of this chapter is to provide standards and regulations
for various types of intrusion, burglar, fire and other emergency alarm devices,
whether by direct line, radio, telephone or other means, actuating a device
at the police headquarters of the Borough of River Edge and requiring response
thereto by the Police Department, Fire Department or other municipal agencies.
The provisions of this chapter shall apply to any person who operates, maintains or owns any alarm device or local alarm designed to summon the police, Fire Department or other municipal agencies to any location in response to any type of alarm signal. The terms of this chapter shall in no way prohibit alarm companies from providing service by private source to other offices within or without the Borough of River Edge, so long as such activity is not connected to the alarm console; except, however, that any person having a premises protected by an alarm device shall still be responsible for the registration thereof in accordance with §
108-6A without fee. This chapter shall not apply to volunteer fire or ambulance companies in the Borough of River Edge.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
ALARM CONSOLE
Defined as the console or control panel of devices giving a visual
or audio response, or both, and located within the confines of the Police
Department of the Borough of River Edge.
ALARM DEVICE
Any type of alarm system actuating equipment in the alarm console
providing warning of intrusion, fire, smoke, flood or other peril.
ALARM INSTALLATION
Any alarm device or combination of devices installed for one (1)
or more buildings at a location other than the alarm console.
DIAL ALARM
That type of device using telephone lines transmitting an alarm directly
to an alarm company or other responsible party.
[Amended 9-3-2002 by Ord. No. 1392]
FALSE ALARM
Any alarm actuated by inadvertence, negligence or unintentional act
of someone other than an intruder, and shall include as well alarms caused
by malfunctioning of the alarm device or other relevant equipment, but shall
not include alarms created by malfunction of the alarm console.
LICENSEE
The person obtaining the license to maintain the alarm console as
hereinafter set forth.
LOCAL ALARM
Any alarm or device which, when actuated, produces a signal not connected
to an alarm company or receiving party such as store or home burglar alarms
actuating bell or siren devices.
[Amended 9-3-2002 by Ord. No. 1392]
PERMITTEE
Any person owning an alarm device or a local alarm within the scope
of this chapter.
PERSON
Includes any natural person, partnership, corporation or association.
The Borough of River Edge shall be under no duty or obligation to any
permittee hereunder or to any alarm console licensee hereunder, the alarm
console and allied equipment being maintained at will and subject to termination
at any time by cancellation of the system by resolution duly adopted by the
Mayor and Council of the Borough of River Edge, and any individual permit
issued hereunder may be revoked at any time by the Mayor and Council upon
recommendation of the Police Chief, provided that thirty (30) days' notice
is given, in writing, to said permittee.
Dial alarm devices shall be permitted only under the following conditions:
A. All owners of dial alarms shall register the same in the manner set forth in §
108-6B of this chapter.
B. Equipment. No dial alarm devices shall be finally registered
until a test alarm has been made by the owner in conjunction with the Chief
of Police or his representatives.
C. No dial alarm devices shall be permitted unless of a type approved by the Chief of Police in accordance with the rules promulgated under §
108-11 of this chapter. Any such equipment must have the approval of the New Jersey Bell Telephone Company or its successor.
D. All dial alarm services shall be coded to dial an alarm
company receiving agent. No devices shall be coded to dial to the Police Department
directly.
[Amended 7-21-1975 by Ord.
No. 645; 9-3-2002 by Ord. No. 1392]
E. Any dial alarm device shall be coded as well to notify
a relative, neighbor or other third party who will be disclosed in the registration
of said equipment as required by this chapter.
F. All dial alarm devices shall be capable of disconnect
to enable the owner to call the police switchboard to indicate that a false
alarm has occurred.
H. Owners of dial alarm devices shall be governed by the false alarm procedures and penalties set forth in §
108-10D of this chapter.
I. In the event that any person has a dial alarm device in existence at the time of the passage of this chapter, he shall have thirty (30) days in which to re-program the equipment to comply with the terms of this chapter and in which to pay the annual fee. Any person not so complying shall be liable to a penalty payable to the Borough of River Edge in the amount stated in §
108-12 of this chapter.
[Amended 12-16-1996 by Ord. No. 1172]
J. Any person having a dial alarm device which dials the general police number, upon discovery thereof, shall receive notice, in writing, from the Chief of Police requiring the owner to comply with the terms of this chapter, and if the owner fails to do so within thirty (30) days of the receipt of said notice, he shall then be liable to pay to the Borough of River Edge a penalty as stated in §
108-12 of this chapter.
[Amended 12-16-1996 by Ord. No. 1172]
K. The contents of any recorded message from a dial alarm
device must be intelligible and in a format approved by the Chief of Police;
no such message shall be transmitted more than three (3) times as a result
of a single stimulus of the mechanism; messages shall not exceed fifteen (15)
sections, and the time gap between delivery shall be approximately ten (10)
seconds.
L. The sensory mechanism of such devices shall be adjusted
so as to suppress false indications and not to be actuated by impulses due
to pressure changes in water pipes, short flashes of light, wind, noises,
rattling or vibration of doors or windows or other forces unrelated to general
alarms.
M. All components of such equipment must be maintained by
the owner in good repair, and when evidence exists that there has been failure
to comply with the operational requirements of this chapter, the Chief of
Police is then authorized to demand that such device be disconnected until
such time as compliance with current requirements is re-established.
N. All alarm systems shall be adjusted so that a system resets after
notifying the alarm company or receiving agent.
[Added 9-3-2002 by Ord. No. 1392]
[Amended 12-16-1996 by Ord. No. 1172; 9-3-2002
by Ord. No. 1392]
Local alarms shall be registered in accordance with this chapter. In
addition thereto, those persons having local alarms shall be required to leave
with the Police Department the name of a person who can be reached in case
of malfunctioning of the equipment in order that the device can be temporarily
disconnected. All alarm mechanisms shall be adjusted so that the alarm signal
audible on the exterior of the alarm site will sound for no longer than 15
minutes after being activated.
The Chief of Police may from time to time promulgate rules and regulations
supplementing this chapter in order to provide for recordkeeping and efficient
management of said system; provided, however, that the Mayor and Council must
first approve said rules or any changes thereto.
[Added 9-20-2002 by Ord. No. 1392]
A. For a first false alarm, a warning letter will be issued
to the permittee.
B. For a second false alarm in a twelve-month period, the
permittee shall be assessed an administrative fee of $50 to be paid to the
Borough.
C. For a third and any subsequent false alarms in a twelve-month
period, the permittee shall be assessed a fee of $100 to be paid to the Borough.
D. If a false alarm should result in a malfunction of an
alarm system, and the permittee demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Police
Chief that problems with the system have been corrected and there have not
been any subsequent false alarms within any six-month period, then in that
event, any new false alarms shall be considered a first offense under this
section.
E. Failure to pay any administrative fee as required by this section shall constitute a violation of the chapter and shall subject the violator to violations and penalties as provided in §
108-13.
[Amended 12-16-1996 by Ord.
No. 1172; 9-3-2002
by Ord. No. 1392]
For a violation of any provision of this chapter, a maximum penalty,
upon conviction thereof, shall be a fine not exceeding $1,000 or prison for
up to 90 days or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days, or any
combination thereof.