The City Council of the City of Inglewood is hereby authorized to offer and pay rewards pursuant to the reward program as set forth herein below and as authorized by those provisions of Section 53069.5 and 53069.7 of the Government Code of the State of California.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03)
The term "reward" as used herein shall mean an authorized payment of monetary compensation to a person or persons for:
(a) 
Information received by the City within the time period set by the City Council which ultimately leads to the determination of the identity, the apprehension and conviction of a person or persons whose wilful misconduct has resulted in injury or death to a person or persons or who has wilfully damaged or destroyed any property; or
(b) 
Coming to the aid of a police officer of the City of Inglewood or for the furnishing of information to the City leading to the arrest and conviction of any person or persons who killed, assaulted with a deadly weapon, or inflicted serious bodily harm upon a police officer of the City while that officer was acting in the line of duty.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03)
(1) 
(a) 
Persons wanting the City of Inglewood to offer rewards for information leading to the apprehension and conviction of any person or persons for the crimes of homicide and damage or destruction of government owned property, churches, hospitals, medical clinics or schools may make application to the Chief of Police of the Inglewood Police Department, in the form and manner which he may require. The Chief of Police will evaluate each request for the offering of a reward and shall provide a written recommendation to the City Council stating whether the underlying facts of the case, as they are known at the time of the request for a reward to be offered, support the offering of the reward and the amount of the recommended amount of the proposed reward.
(b) 
Subject to the requirements set forth in this Article, the City Council, as a result of the happening of a particular event or series of events in the community; and upon adoption of an appropriate resolution or motion, may offer a reward, as that term is described in Section 5-101.
(2) 
An offer of reward shall:
(a) 
Clearly identify the specific event or events which support the offer of a reward;
(b) 
Find that the injury, death and/or destruction of property resulted from the wilful misconduct of one or more persons;
(c) 
Find that the offer would be consistent with and is taken for the immediate protection of the public peace, health or safety;
(d) 
Find that the offense was of such nature or committed under such special circumstances that as a matter of public policy the City should provide for a reward as an added inducement or incentive for persons to come forth with information leading to the needed identification, apprehension and conviction;
(e) 
Find that the special circumstance such as, but not limited to, those set forth below exists wherein:
(i) 
The offense was committed by means of a destructive device, bomb, or explosive, by poison, or involved infliction of torture, or was especially heinous, atrocious or cruel and manifested exceptional depravity; and/or
(ii) 
The victim was a police officer of the City engaged in the performance of his or her duties or a witness to a crime and one whose testimony in a criminal proceeding was prevented by the offense or whose testimony had already been given, or a judge or former judge of a court of record, or an elected or appointed official or former official of government;
(f) 
Determine a sum which shall be the aggregate maximum sum of any payment or payments of a City reward in the instance involved;
(g) 
Determine a maximum term, no greater than one year, during which the offer of reward shall be in effect;
(h) 
Appropriate when necessary those moneys needed to satisfy the aggregate maximum reward authorized;
(i) 
Find, in lieu of subdivisions (b), (c), (d), and (e) of this subsection (2) or supplementary thereto if so applicable, that a reward should be provided for a person or persons who came to the aid of a City of Inglewood police officer, or who furnished information leading to the arrest and conviction of any person or persons who killed or who assaulted with a deadly weapon or inflicted serious bodily harm upon a City of Inglewood police officer acting in the line of duty; and
(j) 
Direct the Administrative Officer to publicize the offer of reward.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; 97-19 9-2-97; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03)
(1) 
An offer of reward by the City shall be effective upon adoption of a resolution authorizing the reward. In the event the term of an offer of reward is extended as provided herein, the Administrative Officer shall provide the same publicity thereto as that given to the original offer of reward.
(2) 
An offer of reward by the City shall terminate by payment, by revocation, or by withdrawal thereof by the City Council by resolution or motion or by expiration of the period of time set forth in the resolution or motion offering the reward, or any extension thereof, which was approved by the City Council while the offer was otherwise effective. A terminated offer of reward shall have no operative or legal force or effect with respect to Council consideration of information received by the City prior to the termination of the offer of reward.
(3) 
In the event an offer of reward has been terminated by revocation or withdrawal by the City Council prior to the term identified in the offer of reward or an approved extension thereof, the Administrative Officer shall provide the same publicity thereto as that given to the offer of reward.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; Ord. 97-19 9-2-97; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03)
Information of whatever form or nature filed with, submitted to, or otherwise received by the City Council, an officer or employee, or department, with respect to apprehension, identification, or where applicable the arrest and conviction of a person or persons, and whether or not the information is accompanied by a request, demand, or claim of any reward offered, shall be deemed to be filed, submitted, and received for informational purposes only and no claim of action or property right shall arise therefrom. The City Council may consider any such information as a factor in whatever deliberations it may undertake with respect to a particular offer of reward possibly affected thereby. Neither the filing or submitting of information, nor the receipt or consideration thereof by the City, shall establish any legal claim to, right of recovery of, any reward offered by the City.
Information received by other than the Inglewood Police Department shall be immediately transmitted by the recipient to the Inglewood Police Department for record purposes. The Administrative Officer shall transmit to the Inglewood Police Department for its use and investigation, any information which that office receives in order that the Department may coordinate its activity with those law enforcement and governmental agencies legally charged with or responsible for investigation into and/or prosecution of an event which has become the basis of an offer of reward.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; Ord. 97-19 9-2-97; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03)
(1) 
After identification, apprehension, arrests and conviction, of a person or persons with respect to commission of an act which prompted the offer of reward, the City Council shall determine whether the information received had been:
(a) 
Either accompanied or followed by, a letter, or other written expression of an intent to claim the reward offered;
(b) 
Received during the term in which the offer of reward was in effect;
(c) 
Tendered as more than a mere suspicion and was sufficient to provide for the subsequent identification, apprehension, or where applicable the arrest and conviction, of the person or persons responsible in whole or in part for that act which prompted the offer of reward;
(d) 
Accompanied by sufficient information to satisfy whatever had been established by the City Council as special conditions for payment of the reward; and is consistent with the limitations upon payment set forth in Section 5-106.
(2) 
All decisions with respect to the relevance or materiality of information received, whether or not utilized in establishing the identity, apprehension, or where applicable the arrest and conviction, of any one or more persons provides a basis for payment of a reward, are within the sole discretion of the City Council. The City Council may, but need not, include as a factor in its decisions, the consideration of whether there has been a final adjudication by a Juvenile Court under the provisions of the Welfare and Institutions Code of the State of California, or with respect to a person not under Juvenile Court jurisdiction, a court adjudication which has become final.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03)
Payment of any reward or rewards, as provided in this Section, shall require City Council approval by resolution or motion, subject to the following limitations:
(1) 
No person shall be eligible to be paid by, or to receive from the City any reward for any offer of information unless the information was received by the City during the term the reward offer was in effect;
(2) 
A payment of reward may be for a sum less than that which has been advertised, and may be prorated with respect to the information received and/or with respect to the number of sources from which received, provided, however, that no payment or aggregate of payments of City funds shall exceed the sum designated by any advertised City reward offer;
(3) 
The City Council upon the recommendation of the Chief of Police may determine what portion of a reward, if any, is to be paid to any one or more persons;
(4) 
No reward shall be paid to a City officer, employee, or member of the immediate family of such officer or employee, or to a public officer or employee whose employment includes duties of law enforcement;
(5) 
No reward shall be paid to any person or persons involved in misconduct which prompted the offer of the reward by the City Council; and
(6) 
No reward offered by the City Council shall exceed the following amounts:
(a) 
Twenty-five thousand dollars for information leading to the arrest and felony conviction of any person or persons responsible for a homicide;
(b) 
Five thousand dollars for information leading to the arrest and felony conviction of any persons or persons responsible for property damage greater than $50,000.
(c) 
Fifty thousand dollars for information leading to the arrest and felony conviction of any person or persons responsible for a homicide of a City employee.
(d) 
One hundred thousand dollars for information leading to the arrest and felony conviction of any person or persons responsible for a homicide of a City employee while that employee was performing or discharging any duty of his or her employment.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03; Ord. 06-03 2-28-06)
All determinations affecting, or dispositive of, offers of reward shall be within the sole discretion of the City Council and shall be final.
(Ord. 90-25 8-28-90; Ord. 03-07 7-15-03)