City of Ellisville, MO Article III Offenses Concerning Administration of Justice [1]

[1] Cross References—Administration, Title I; courts, ch. 135; police, ch. 200.

State Law References—Offenses against the administration of justice, ch. 575, RSMo.; offenses affecting government, ch. 576, RSMo.

Section 210.060 Concealing An Offense. [1]

A. A person commits the offense of concealing an offense if:

1. He/she confers or agrees to confer any pecuniary benefit or other consideration to any person in consideration of that person's concealing of any offense, refraining from initiating or aiding in the prosecution of an offense, or withholding any evidence thereof; or

2. He/she accepts or agrees to accept any pecuniary benefit or other consideration in consideration of his/her concealing any offense, refraining from initiating or aiding in the prosecution of an offense, or withholding any evidence thereof.

[1] Note—Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony under state law.

Section 210.065 Failure To Comply With Order Of A Police Officer.

[R.O. 2005 §18-21; CC 1997 §18-21; Ord. No. 3412, 4-3-2019[1]]

A. A person commits the offense of Failure to Comply with Order of a Police Officer if he or she:

1. Fails to comply with the lawful order or request of a Police Officer in the discharge of the officer's official duties where such failure interfered with, obstructed or hindered the Police Officer in the performance of such duties; or

2. Fails to identify himself or herself by name upon request when lawfully detained by a Police Officer, provided, however, that the person may not be compelled to answer any other inquiry of the Police Officer; or

3. Knowingly falsifies, conceals or covers up by any trick, scheme or device, a material fact, makes any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or representation, or makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or entry.

[1] Editor's Note: Ord. No. 3412 also changed the title of this Section from "Refusing Reasonable Requests of Police Officers" to "Failure To Comply With Order Of A Police Officer."

Section 210.070 Hindering Prosecution. [1]

A. A person commits the offense of hindering prosecution if for the purpose of preventing the apprehension, prosecution, conviction or punishment of another for conduct constituting a crime he/she:

1. Harbors or conceals such person;

2. Warns such person of impending discovery or apprehension, except this does not apply to a warning given in connection with an effort to bring another into compliance with the law;

3. Provides such person with money, transportation, weapon, disguise or other means to aid him/her in avoiding discovery or apprehension; or

4. Prevents or obstructs, by means of force, deception or intimidation, anyone from performing an act that might aid in the discovery or apprehension of such person.

[1] Note—Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony under state law.

Section 210.080 Refusal To Identify As A Witness.

A person commits the offense of refusal to identify as a witness if, knowing he/she has witnessed any portion of a crime, or of any other incident resulting in physical injury or substantial property damage, upon demand by a Law Enforcement Officer engaged in the performance of his/her official duties, he/she refuses to report or gives a false report of his/her name and present address to such officer.

Section 210.090 Disturbing A Judicial Proceeding.

A person commits the offense of disturbing a judicial proceeding if, with purpose to intimidate a judge, attorney, juror, party or witness and thereby to influence a judicial proceeding, he/she disrupts or disturbs a judicial proceeding by participating in an assembly and calling aloud, shouting, or holding or displaying a placard or sign containing written or printed matter concerning the conduct of the judicial proceeding or the character of a judge, attorney, juror, party or witness engaged in such proceeding, or calling for or demanding any specified action or determination by such judge, attorney, juror, party or witness in connection with such proceeding.

Section 210.100 Tampering With A Witness — Tampering With A Victim. [1]

A. A person commits the offense of tampering with a witness if, with purpose to induce a witness or a prospective witness to disobey a subpoena or other legal process, or to absent himself/herself or avoid subpoena or other legal process, or to withhold evidence, information or documents, or to testify falsely, he/she:

1. Threatens or causes harm to any person or property;

2. Uses force, threats or deception;

3. Offers, confers or agrees to confer any benefit, direct or indirect, upon such witness; or

4. Conveys any of the foregoing to another in furtherance of a conspiracy.

B. A person commits the offense of "victim tampering" if, with purpose to do so, he/she prevents or dissuades or attempts to prevent or dissuade any person who has been a victim of any crime or a person who is acting on behalf of any such victim from:

1. Making any report of such victimization to any Peace Officer or State, local or Federal Law Enforcement Officer or prosecuting agency or to any judge;

2. Causing a complaint, indictment or information to be sought and prosecuted or assisting in the prosecution thereof; or

3. Arresting or causing or seeking the arrest of any person in connection with such victimization.

[1] Note—Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony under state law.

Section 210.110 Improper Communication.

A person commits the offense of improper communication if he/she communicates, directly or indirectly, with any juror, special master, referee or arbitrator in a judicial proceeding, other than as part of the proceedings in a case, for the purpose of influencing the official action of such person.

Section 210.120 False Impersonation.

A. A person commits the offense of false impersonation if such person:

1. Falsely represents himself/herself to be a public servant with purpose to induce another to submit to his/her pretended official authority or to rely upon his/her pretended official acts, and

a. Performs an act in that pretended capacity; or

b. Causes another to act in reliance upon his/her pretended official authority.

2. Falsely represents himself/herself to be a person licensed to practice or engage in any profession for which a license is required by the laws of this State with purpose to induce another to rely upon such representation, and

a. Performs an act in that pretended capacity; or

b. Causes another to act in reliance upon such representation.

3. Upon being arrested, falsely represents himself/herself, to a Law Enforcement Officer, with the first and last name, date of birth or Social Security number, or a substantial number of identifying factors or characteristics as that of another person that results in the filing of a report or record of arrest or conviction for an infraction, misdemeanor or felony that contains the first and last name, date of birth and Social Security number, or a substantial number of identifying factors or characteristics to that of such other person as to cause such other person to be identified as the actual person arrested or convicted.

B. If a violation of Subsection (A)(3) hereof is discovered prior to any conviction of the person actually arrested for an underlying charge, then the prosecuting attorney bringing any action on the underlying charge shall notify the court thereof, and the court shall order the false-identifying factors ascribed to the person actually arrested as are contained in the arrest and court records amended to correctly and accurately identify the defendant and shall expunge the incorrect and inaccurate identifying factors from the arrest and court records.

C. Any person who is the victim of a false impersonation and whose identity has been falsely reported in arrest or conviction records may move for expungement and correction of said records under the procedures set forth in Section 610.123, RSMo. Upon a showing that a substantial number of identifying factors of the victim was falsely ascribed to the person actually arrested or convicted, the court shall order the false-identifying factors ascribed to the person actually arrested as are contained in the arrest and court records amended to correctly and accurately identify the defendant and shall expunge the incorrect and inaccurate factors from the arrest and court records.

Section 210.130 False Reports.

A. A person commits the offense of making a false report if he/she knowingly:

1. Gives false information to any person for the purpose of implicating another person in a crime or offense;

2. Makes a false report to a Law Enforcement Officer that a crime or offense has occurred or is about to occur; or

3. Makes a false report or causes a false report to be made to a Law Enforcement Officer, security officer, Fire Department or other organization, official or volunteer which deals with emergencies involving danger to life or property that a fire or other incident calling for an emergency response has occurred or is about to occur.

B. It is a defense to a prosecution under Subsection (A) of this Section that the actor retracted the false statement or report before the Law Enforcement Officer or any other person took substantial action in reliance thereon.

C. The defendant shall have the burden of injecting the issue of retraction under Subsection (B) of this Section.

Section 210.135 False Alarm Systems.

[R.O. 2005 §18-22; Ord. No. 2290 §1, 11-18-1998; Ord. No. 2416 §1, 1-17-2001]

A. Definitions. For the purposes of this Section, the following words have the meanings respectively ascribed to them in this Section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

ALARM USER

Any individual, partnership, corporation or other form of association that owns or leases a security alarm system or on whose premises a security alarm system is maintained for the protection of the premises.

AUTOMATIC DIALING TELEPHONE ALARM

A security alarm system with a device that automatically dials the Police Department emergency assistance telephone lines without human activation of the device by the alarm user.

CHIEF OF POLICE

The Chief of Police of the City of Ellisville and the Chief's designee.

DEPARTMENT

The Ellisville Police Department.

DISPATCH OR RESPONSE

A discretionary decision whether to direct Police units to a location where there has been a request, made by whatever means, for Police assistance or investigation. There is no duty to dispatch under any circumstances, including to answer an alarm signal, and all dispatch decisions are made subject to competing priorities and available Police resources.

FALSE ALARM

An alarm signal eliciting notification to and a response by the Police when there is no evidence of a crime or other activity that warrants a call for immediate Police assistance and no person who was on or near the property or has viewed a video communication from the property called for the Police dispatch or confirmed the need for Police assistance. "False alarm" does not include an alarm signal caused by violent conditions of nature or other extraordinary circumstances beyond the control of the alarm user.

SECURITY ALARM SYSTEM

Any system, device or mechanism for the detection and reporting of any unauthorized entry or attempted entry or property damage upon premises protected by the system that may be activated by sensors or other techniques and, when activated, automatically transmits a telephone message or emits an audible, visible or electronic signal that can be heard, seen or received by persons outside of the protected premises and is intended to summon Police assistance.

B. Audible Alarm Standards. A security alarm system that emits an audible signal that may be heard outside of the protected premises shall conform to the following requirements:

1. Audible alarms shall automatically discontinue emitting the audible sound within ten (10) minutes after activation of the alarm; and

2. With respect to security alarm systems in existence prior to the enactment of this Section that do not comply with Subparagraph (B)(1) above, the alarm user shall have ninety (90) days from the enactment of the ordinance in which to make the necessary modifications to the alarm system in order to comply with the requirement.

It is a defense to a violation of this Subsection that the continuous sounding of the alarm:

a. Assisted in saving a life or avoiding injury; or

b. Was caused by a malfunction of the alarm system equipment without the alarm user's prior knowledge of the cause of the malfunction; or

c. Was activated by an unauthorized entry or criminal activity.

C. Automatic Dialing Telephone Systems Prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any individual, partnership, corporation or other form of association to sell, offer for sale, install, maintain, operate or assist in the operation of any alarm system with an automatic dialing or digital alarm communicator feature that automatically calls the Police in the event of an alarm.

D. Alarm Users. An alarm user shall:

1. Maintain the premises and security alarm system in a manner that will minimize or eliminate false alarms;

2. Review all alarm system operating instructions, including those for verification of an alarm;

3. Notify the alarm system monitoring company of a false alarm activation as soon as the user is aware of the false alarm; and

4. Not manually activate an alarm except when needing an immediate Police response to an emergency.

E. Determination Of False Alarm—Rebuttable Presumption. For the purposes of this Section, there is a rebuttable presumption that the following determinations made by the Chief of Police or by a Police Officer dispatched to the premises reporting an alarm signal are correct:

1. There is no evidence of a crime or other activity that would warrant a call for immediate Police assistance at the premises;

2. No individual who was on or near the premises or who has viewed a video communication from the premises called for a Police dispatch or verified a need for an immediate Police response; and

3. There is no evidence that violent conditions of nature or other extraordinary circumstances beyond the control of the alarm user caused the activation of the alarm.

F. Violations And Penalties. Upon the determination by the Police Department that there has been a violation of the audible alarm standard and/or a false alarm has occurred, the Municipal Court shall send a notice to the alarm user notifying the alarm user of the determination and directing payment of the following fines within thirty (30) days.

1. The sounding of an audible signal from a security alarm system that can be heard continuously off the premises for more than ten (10) minutes is a civil infraction and the alarm user, in addition to any other penalties specified herein, shall be penalized by a fine of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each offense, excluding the alarm user's first (1st) and second (2nd) violations per calendar year.

2. A false alarm is a civil infraction and the alarm system user shall be penalized by a fine of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each offense, excluding the alarm user's first (1st) and second (2nd) violations per calendar year.

3. Failure to respond to an audible signal violation notice and/or false alarm violation notice shall be a civil infraction and punishable by a fine of up to fifty dollars ($50.00), excluding the alarm user's first (1st) and second (2nd) violations per calendar year.

Section 210.140 Resisting or Interfering With Arrest, Detention or Stop. [1]

A. A person commits the offense of resisting or interfering with arrest, detention or stop if, knowing that a Law Enforcement Officer is making an arrest or attempting to lawfully detain or stop an individual or vehicle, or the person reasonably should know that a Law Enforcement Officer is making an arrest or attempting to lawfully detain or lawfully stop an individual or vehicle, for the purpose of preventing the officer from effecting the arrest, stop or detention, the person:

1. Resists the arrest, stop or detention of such person by using or threatening the use of violence or physical force or by fleeing from such officer; or

2. Interferes with the arrest, stop or detention of another person by using or threatening the use of violence, physical force or physical interference.

B. This Section applies to arrests, stops or detentions with or without warrants and to arrests, stops or detentions for any crime, infraction or ordinance violation.

C. A person is presumed to be fleeing a vehicle stop if that person continues to operate a motor vehicle after that person has seen or should have seen clearly visible emergency lights or has heard or should have heard an audible signal emanating from the law enforcement vehicle pursuing that person.

D. It is no defense to a prosecution under Subsection (A) of this Section that the Law Enforcement Officer was acting unlawfully in making the arrest. However, nothing in this Section shall be construed to bar civil suits for unlawful arrest.

[1] Note—Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony under state law.

Section 210.150 Escape or Attempted Escape From Custody. [1]

A person commits the offense of escape from custody or attempted escape from custody if, while being held in custody after arrest for any crime or offense, he/she escapes or attempts to escape from custody.

[1] Note—Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony under state law.

Section 210.153 Aiding Escape of A Prisoner. [1]

[R.O. 2005 §18-20; CC 1997 §18-20]

A. A person commits the offense of aiding escape of a prisoner if he/she:

1. Introduces into any place of confinement any deadly weapon or dangerous instrument or other thing adapted or designed for use in making an escape with the purpose of facilitating the escape of any prisoner confined therein or of facilitating the commission of any other crime; or

2. Assists or attempts to assist any prisoner who is being held in custody or confinement for the purpose of effecting the prisoner's escape from custody or confinement.

[1] State Law Reference—Similar provisions, §575.230, RSMo.

Note—Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony under state law.

Section 210.155 Interference With Legal Process.

A. A person commits the offense of interference with legal process if, knowing any person is authorized by law to serve process, for the purpose of preventing such person from effecting the service of any process, he/she interferes with or obstructs such person.

B. "Process" includes any writ, summons, subpoena, warrant other than an arrest warrant, or other process or order of a court.

C. Interference with legal process is an ordinance violation.

Section 210.156 Assault on a Police Animal.

[Ord. No. 3284 §1, 5-18-2016]

A. A person commits the offense of assault on a police animal when such person knowingly attempts to kill or disable or knowingly causes or attempts to cause serious physical injury to a police animal when that animal is involved in law enforcement investigation, apprehension, tracking, or search, or the animal is in the custody of or under the control of a Law Enforcement Officer, Department of Corrections Officer, Municipal Police Department, Fire Department or a rescue unit or agency.

B. The offense of assault on a police animal is a misdemeanor, unless the assault results in the death of such animal or disables such animal to the extent it is unable to be utilized as a police animal, in which case it is a felony.