[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of
the Town of Smithfield 3-15-2005.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Police Department — See Ch. 76.
[1]
Editor's Note: This chapter also repealed
former Ch. 177, Private Detectives, adopted 8-2-1995, as amended.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following
definitions shall apply:
Any person to whom a license is granted in accordance with
this chapter.
The Town Council of the Town of Smithfield.
No person, without a license issued pursuant
to G.L. 1956, § 5-5, shall engage in the general business
of a private detective or hold himself or herself out as a private
detective or pretend to be a detective police officer. Nothing in
this section shall apply to a detective of another state coming into
the state in the performance of his or her duties, for a temporary
period on a specific matter. Any person who violates this section
shall be punished as provided in G.L. 1956, § 5-5-21.
This chapter is enacted under the authority
conferred by G.L. 1956, § 5-5.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide reasonable
supervision and control of private detectives doing business in the
Town and to ensure the honesty, good character and integrity of the
licensee.
No person shall maintain his or her principal
place of business as a private detective in the Town of Smithfield
without first obtaining a license from the licensing authority.
[Amended 9-4-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-07]
Each person requesting a license under the provisions of this
chapter must file an application with the Town Clerk on forms furnished
by the Clerk. Statements of facts made on said application shall be
made under oath of the applicant. Each application shall include the
following:
A.
A certification by each of three reputable citizens and residents
of the Town that they have personally known the applicant for at least
three years, that they have read the application and believe each
of the statements made thereon to be true, that they are not related
to the applicant by blood or marriage and that the applicant is honest
and of good moral character;
B.
The applicant's record of felony convictions and misdemeanor
convictions involving moral turpitude;
C.
A statement as to whether any prior or similar licenses have ever
been issued to the applicant and, if so, whether such licenses were
ever denied, revoked or suspended in any other municipality or state;
D.
Two sets of the applicant's fingerprints taken at the Smithfield
Police Department;
E.
Two photographs of the applicant taken at the Smithfield Police Department;
and
F.
Satisfactory medical releases authorizing the Smithfield Police Department
to determine if the applicant has any history of psychological disorder.
Every applicant for a license under this chapter
shall meet the following qualifications before he or she may engage
in the business of a private detective:
B.
Be a citizen of the United States or a resident alien;
C.
Not have been declared by any court of competent jurisdiction
incompetent by reason of mental illness or incapacity and not have
been restored;
D.
Not have been discharged from the Armed Services of
the United States under other than honorable conditions;
E.
Be of good moral character;
F.
Not have been convicted in any jurisdiction of a felony;
G.
Not have had any previous private investigator license
or application revoked or denied;
H.
Not suffer from habitual drunkenness or from narcotics
addiction or dependence;
I.
Have experience that has been gained through:
(1)
At least five years experience as an investigator
or as a police officer with a state, county or municipal police department
or with an investigative agency of the United States of America or
of any state, county or municipality; or
(2)
Receipt of a degree in criminal justice from an accredited
college or university; or
(3)
Employment by a private detective as an investigator
for at least five years; or
(4)
Substantively equivalent training or experience.
After receipt of an application for a license,
the licensing authority shall conduct or cause to be conducted an
investigation to determine whether the facts set forth in the application
are true.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 177-9, Psychological evaluation,
was repealed 9-4-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-07.
[Amended 9-4-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-07]
The licensing authority may deny the application for a license
under this chapter if it finds that the applicant:
A.
Violated any of the provisions of this chapter or any rules and regulations
promulgated hereunder;
B.
Knowingly made a material misstatement in the application for or
renewal of a license; or
D.
Practiced fraud, deceit or misrepresentation;
E.
Demonstrated incompetence or untrustworthiness in actions affecting
the conduct of the licensed business.
F.
Has a documented history of psychological disorder of such a nature
that the public health, safety, and welfare may be jeopardized if
a license is issued to the applicant hereunder.
Each license under this chapter, new or renewed, shall expire one year after the date of issuance. Applications for renewal of a license shall be received by the Town Clerk on forms provided by the Clerk not less than 30 days prior to the expiration date of the license. The licensing authority may refuse to renew a license for any of the grounds set forth in §§ 177-6 through 177-10.
A.
The fee for a license application or renewal under
this chapter shall be $150.
B.
Initial license fees shall not be refundable.
C.
If a previously issued license has expired and has
not been renewed within a period of 15 days after expiration, such
application shall be considered the original application and all requirements
of an original application shall apply.
Each person so licensed shall give to the Town
Clerk and his or her successors in the office a bond, with a surety
company authorized to do business in Rhode Island, in the sum of $5,000,
conditioned for the benefit of any person injured by the willful,
malicious, or wrongful acts of the licensee.
