[R.O. 1997 § 215.350; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
A. The City Council finds as follows:
1.
The City of Wildwood, pursuant to
the Police powers delegated to it by the Missouri Constitution, has
the authority to enact laws which promote the public health, safety
and general welfare of its residents.
2.
The occurrence of loud or unruly
gatherings on private property where alcoholic beverages or controlled
substances are served to or consumed by underage persons is harmful
to the underage persons themselves and a threat to public health,
safety, quiet enjoyment of residential property and general welfare.
3.
Underage persons often obtain alcoholic
beverages and controlled substances at gatherings held at private
residences or at rented residential premises that are under the control
of a person who knows or should know of the underage service and/or
consumption. Persons responsible for the occurrence of loud or unruly
gatherings on private property over which they have possession or
control have failed to ensure that alcoholic beverages or controlled
substances are neither served to nor consumed by underage persons
at these parties.
4.
Problems associated with loud or
unruly gatherings at which alcoholic beverages and controlled substances
are served to or consumed by underage persons are difficult to prevent
and deter unless the Police Department has the legal authority to
abate the party or gathering by directing or ordering the host or
other responsible person to disperse the party or gathering.
5.
Control of loud or unruly gatherings
on private property where alcoholic beverages and controlled substances
are served to or consumed by underage persons is necessary when such
activity is determined to be a threat to the peace, health, safety
or general welfare of the public.
6.
Persons held responsible for abetting
or tolerating loud or unruly gatherings will be more likely to properly
supervise or stop such conduct at gatherings held on property under
their possession or control.
7.
In the past and present, law enforcement,
fire and other emergency response services personnel have and are
required to respond, sometimes on multiple occasions, to loud or unruly
gatherings on private property at which alcoholic beverages and controlled
substances are served to or possessed or consumed by underage persons,
and responses to such gatherings result in a disproportionate expenditure
of public safety resources of the City of Wildwood, which are underwritten
by municipal taxes paid by its taxpayers and residents and delaying
Police responses to regular and emergency calls to the rest of the
City.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.360; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
A. The purposes of this Article are:
1.
To protect public health, safety
and general welfare;
2.
To enforce laws prohibiting the service
to and consumption and use of alcoholic beverages and controlled substances
by underage persons; and
3.
To reduce the costs of providing
Police, fire and other emergency response services to loud or unruly
gatherings by imposing a civil fee against social hosts and landowners
for the recovery of costs associated with providing law enforcement,
fire and other emergency response services to loud or unruly gatherings,
including those where alcoholic beverages and controlled substances
are served to or consumed by underage persons.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.370; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
For the purposes of this Article,
the following terms shall have the following meanings:
ADULT
Any person twenty-one (21) years of age or older.
ALCOHOL
Any substance containing any form of alcohol, including,
but not limited to, ethanol, methanol, propanol and isopropanol.
ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE
The same meaning as "intoxicating liquor" as that term is defined in Chapter
600 of the City of Wildwood Code.
JUVENILE
Any person under seventeen (17) years of age.
LOUD OR UNRULY GATHERING
1.
A party or gathering of two (2) or more underage persons at
or on a residence or other private property upon which loud or unruly
conduct occurs. Such loud or unruly conduct includes, but is not limited
to:
c.
Obstruction of public streets or
crowds that have spilled into public streets;
d.
Public drunkenness, unlawful public
consumption or possession of alcohol or alcoholic beverages by underage
persons;
e.
Service to or consumption of alcohol
or alcoholic beverages by any underage person, except as permitted
by City Code, State law or Missouri Constitution;
f.
Assaults, batteries, fights, domestic
violence or other disturbances of the peace;
i.
Any other conduct which constitutes
a threat to public health, safety, quiet enjoyment of residential
property or general welfare.
2.
A loud or unruly gathering shall constitute a public nuisance
and may be abated by an order of a Police Officer directing the host
or other responsible person to cause all persons in or on said premises
who are not lawful residents thereof to disperse not more than fifteen
(15) minutes after the host or other responsible person receives an
order to do so issued by a Police Officer.
RESIDENCE or OTHER PRIVATE PROPERTY
A home, yard, open field, vacant lot, apartment, condominium
or other dwelling unit or a hall or meeting room, whether occupied
as a dwelling, party or other social function and whether owned, leased,
rented or used with or without compensation.
RESPONSE COSTS
The costs associated with responses by law enforcement, fire
and other emergency response providers to loud or unruly gatherings
including, but not limited to:
1.
Salaries and benefits of law enforcement,
fire or other emergency response personnel for the amount of time
spent responding to, remaining at or otherwise dealing with loud or
unruly gatherings and the administrative costs attributable to such
response(s).
2.
The cost of any medical treatment
to or for any law enforcement, fire or other emergency response personnel
injured responding to, remaining at or leaving the scene of a loud
or unruly gathering.
3.
The cost of repairing any City or
emergency services equipment or property damaged and the cost of the
use of any such equipment in responding to, remaining at or leaving
the scene of a loud or unruly gathering.
RESPONSIBLE PERSON
1.
A person or persons with a right of possession in the residence
or other private property on which a loud or unruly gathering is conducted
including, but not limited to:
a.
An owner of the residence or other
private property;
b.
A tenant or lessee of the residence
or other private property;
c.
The person(s) in charge of the residence
or other private property; and
d.
The person(s) who organizes, supervises,
officiates, conducts or controls the gathering or any other person(s)
accepting responsibility for such a gathering.
2.
If a responsible person for the gathering is a juvenile, then
the parents or guardians of that juvenile and the juvenile will be
jointly and severally liable for the response costs incurred pursuant
to this Article. To incur liability for response costs imposed by
this Article, the responsible person for the loud or unruly gathering
need not be present at such gathering resulting in the response giving
rise to the imposition of response costs. This Article therefore imposes
vicarious as well as direct liability upon a responsible person.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.380; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
Every owner, occupant, lessee or
holder of any possessory interest of a residence or other private
property within the City of Wildwood is required to maintain, manage
and supervise the property and all persons thereon in a manner so
as not to violate the provisions of this Article.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.390; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
A. Prohibited Acts.
1. It shall be unlawful for any responsible person to allow, permit
or host a loud or unruly gathering at a residence or other private
property. Whenever an adult having control of the residence or premises
is present at that residence or premises at the time an underage person
obtains, possesses, or consumes any alcoholic beverage or controlled
substance, it shall be prima facie evidence that such an adult had
the knowledge or should have had the knowledge that the underage person
obtained, possessed or consumed an alcoholic beverage or controlled
substance at the gathering.
2. No responsible person shall allow a loud or unruly gathering to take
place or continue at said residence or premises if an underage person
at the party obtains, possesses or consumes any alcoholic beverages
or controlled substances and the responsible person knows or reasonably
should know that the underage person has obtained, possesses or is
consuming alcoholic beverages or controlled substances at the gathering.
3. This Article shall not apply to family gatherings at which underage
persons are present and supervised by their parents and/or legal guardians.
B. Fines. A fine may be imposed up to the maximum amount provided for in Section
100.140 of the Code for any violation of this Article.
C. The fines imposed pursuant to Subsection
(B) are in addition to any response costs that may be assessed pursuant to this Article.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.400; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
Any person upon whom a fine is imposed pursuant to Section
215.390 shall have the right to appeal the imposition of such fine in the manner as provided for in Sections
135.200 and
135.210 of the Wildwood City Code.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.410; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
A. When law enforcement, fire or other emergency
response provider responds to a loud or unruly gathering at a residence
or other private property within the City of Wildwood within a twelve
(12) month period of a warning given to a responsible person for a
loud or unruly gathering, all responsible persons shall be jointly
and severally liable for the response costs for that response and
all subsequent responses during the warning period.
B. When a law enforcement, fire or other emergency
response provider official makes an initial response to a loud or
unruly gathering at a residence or other private property within the
City of Wildwood, the official shall inform any responsible person(s)
for the gathering at the scene that:
1.
The official has determined that
a loud or unruly gathering exists; and
2.
Responsible person(s) will be charged
for any response costs required for subsequent responses to the scene
for a loud or unruly gathering within a twelve (12) month period involving
the same responsible person(s).
C. Only one (1) warning will be given to a responsible person(s) pursuant to this Article before the City of Wildwood assesses response costs pursuant to Section
215.410. If a responsible person cannot be identified at the scene, the official may issue a warning to one (1) or more persons identified in Section
215.370 under the definition of "responsible person" and/or subsequently return to the residence or other private property and issue the warning to a then-present responsible person. Warnings given to responsible persons who do not reside at the residence or other private property in question shall be delivered by first class and/or certified mail.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.420; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
A. The amount of response costs shall be deemed a debt owed to the City of Wildwood by the responsible person held liable in Section
215.410 for the loud or unruly gathering and, if a juvenile, by the juvenile's parents or guardians.
B. Notice of the costs for which the responsible
person is liable shall be mailed via first class and/or certified
mail within fourteen (14) days of the response giving rise to such
costs. The notice shall contain the following information:
1.
The name of the person(s) being held
liable for the payment of such costs;
2.
The address of the residence or other
private property where the loud or unruly gathering occurred;
3.
The date and time of the response;
4.
The law enforcement, fire or emergency
service provider who responded;
5.
The date and time of any previous warning given pursuant to Section
215.410 and/or previous responses to loud or unruly gatherings at the residence or other private property in question within the previous twelve (12) months; and
6.
An itemized list of the response
costs for which the person(s) is being held liable.
C. The responsible person must remit payment
of the noticed response costs to the City Clerk within thirty (30)
days of the date of the notice. Any action to recover such costs will
be brought in the name of the City of Wildwood in the Circuit Court
for the County of St. Louis, Missouri.
D. In addition to all other remedies provided
for in this Section, if a responsible person(s) fails to remit the
costs assessed hereunder, said costs shall be certified to the City
Clerk who shall cause the costs to be included in a special tax bill
or added to the annual real estate tax bill, at the collecting official's
option, for the property, and the certified costs shall be collected
by the City Collector or other official collecting taxes in the same
manner and procedure for collecting real estate taxes. If the certified
costs are not paid, the tax bill shall be considered delinquent, and
the collection of the delinquent bill shall be governed by the laws
governing delinquent and back taxes. The tax bill from the date of
issuance shall be deemed a personal debt against the owner and shall
also be a lien on the property until paid.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.430; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
Nothing in this Article shall be
construed as a waiver by the City of Wildwood of any right to seek
reimbursement for actual costs of response services through other
legal remedies or procedures. The procedure provided for in this Article
is in addition to any other Statute, ordinance or law, civil or criminal.
This Article in no way limits the authority of Peace Officers or private
citizens to make arrests for any criminal offense arising out of conduct
regulated by this Article.
[R.O. 1997 § 215.440; Ord. No. 1510 § 1, 5-12-2008]
If any provisions of this Article
or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid,
the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of
this Article that can be given effect without the invalid provision
or application and, to this end, the provisions of this Article are
severable.