[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Commission
of the City of Parsons 2-19-1996 by Ord. No. 5722. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Any assembly of equipment, mechanical or electrical, arranged
to signal the occurrence of an illegal entry or other activity requiring
urgent attention and to which police and/or fire personnel would be
expected to respond.[1]
The person, firm, partnership, association, corporation,
company or organization of any kind in control of any building, structure
or facility who or which purchases, leases, contracts for or otherwise
obtains an alarm system or for the servicing or maintenance of an
alarm system and therefore contracts with or hires an alarm business
to monitor and/or service the alarm device.
A telephone answering business providing among its services
the service of receiving on a continuous basis, through trained employees,
emergency signals from alarm systems and thereafter immediately relaying
the message by live voice to the communication center of the Parsons,
Kansas Police Department.
An electrically operated instrument composed of sensory apparatus
and related hardware which automatically sends over regular telephone
lines a prerecorded voice alarm upon receipt of a stimulus from the
sensory apparatus that has detected a force or condition characteristic
of an unauthorized intrusion or an emergency message indicating a
need for emergency response.
An alarm system signaling an entry or attempted entry into
an area protected by the system.
Those dates than run from January 1 through December 31 of
each year.[2]
A system or group of systems operated by a person, firm or
corporation in which the operations of electrical protection circuits
and devices are transmitted to, recorded in, maintained and supervised
from a central station having operators in attendance at all times.
The Chief of Police of the City of Parsons, Kansas, or his
or her designee.
The City of Parsons, Kansas.
The individual designated by the Chief of Police to enforce
the provisions of this chapter.
An alarm signal eliciting an urgent response by police and/or
fire personnel when a situation requiring an urgent response does
not, in fact, exist, but does not include an alarm signal caused by
violent conditions of nature. A false alarm may be the result of,
but not limited to, mechanical or electronic failure, malfunction,
improper installation, improper adjustment, accidental tripping, misoperation,
misuse, defect or negligence of a person. The burden of proving that
such alarm was not a false alarm shall be on the alarm business or
alarm user.[3]
An alarm system which when activated causes an audible and/or
visual signaling device to be activated and is intended to be seen
and/or heard by others outside of the protected premises.
Written notice, given by personal service upon the addressee,
or given by United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the
person to be notified at his last known address. Service of such notice
shall be effective upon completion of personal service or upon placing
of the same in the custody of the United States Postal Service.
A telephone line leading into the communications center of
the Parsons, Kansas, Police Department that is for the purpose of
handling emergency calls on a person-to-person basis and which line
is identified by a specific listing among the emergency numbers by
the telephone company serving the City.
An alarm system sounding and/or recording alarm and supervisory
signals to a control center located within the protected premises,
the control center being under the supervision of the proprietor of
the premises. If a proprietary system includes a signal line connected
directly or by means of an automatic dialing device to a police communication
system, a central station protective system or answering service,
it thereby becomes an alarm system as defined in this section.
An alarm system installed or maintained in a residence for
the purpose of summoning police assistance to an actual or attempted
burglary, robbery or medical emergency requiring an urgent or emergency
response by fire, medical or police personnel and equipment.
An alarm system signaling a robbery or attempted robbery.
A telephone line leading into the central switchboard of
the Parsons, Kansas, Police Department that is identified by a specific
listing in the telephone directory for handling administrative and
other calls on a person-to-person basis.
A.Â
The Chief of Police or his or her designee may require
inspection of any or all alarm systems installed within the City.
B.Â
Local alarm systems installed within 30 days after
the effective date of this chapter shall not emit a sound similar
to that of an emergency vehicle siren or a civil defense warning system.
C.Â
Local alarm systems shall be equipped to automatically
discontinue emitting an audible sound within 15 minutes of activation.
D.Â
Alarm users shall notify the police communications
center prior to any service, test, repair, maintenance, adjustment,
alteration or installation of a local or police-monitored alarm system
which might activate a false alarm. Upon the completion of such service,
test, repair, maintenance, adjustment, alteration or installation,
the alarm user shall notify the police communications center of such
completion.
E.Â
An alarm business, alarm user, employee of a central
station protective system or employee of an answering service charged
with the responsibility of relaying a live voice request for police
response upon the activation of an alarm system shall give the following
information to the police communications center at the time of such
request: address of alarmed location; type of alarm that has been
activated; name of commercial business or resident; specific location
of the building, structure or facility protected by the activated
alarm; name of the alarm business making request if applicable; name
of person making the request; and a telephone number where the requesting
party can be contacted. Unless specifically requested, it is the sole
responsibility of the person making such request to notify authorized
persons in control of such alarmed building, structure or facility
that such alarm has been activated.
F.Â
The Chief of Police or his or her designee shall be
responsible for determining which alarms constitute false alarms as
defined by this chapter. A record of all false alarms shall be maintained
by the Chief of Police.
G.Â
At the time of the first false alarm within a calendar
year, the Chief of Police or his or her designee will notify the alarm
user of the premises where the alarm activated by first-class mail
of such occurrence and that additional false alarms during the current
calendar year could require the payment of fees as per this chapter.
H.Â
It is unlawful for any person to activate any burglary,
robbery or residential emergency alarm for the purpose of summoning
police except in the event of an actual or attempted burglary, robbery
or medical emergency or for such persons notifying the police of an
activated alarm and having knowledge that such activation was apparently
caused by an electrical or other malfunction of the alarm system to
fail to notify the police communication center of such malfunction.
I.Â
It shall be unlawful to have or maintain an alarm
system on any premises without providing address numbers which are
clearly visible from a distance of 100 feet or more. The address numbers
shall be posted to the left, right or overhead of the main entrance
of the building, structure or facility, and if such building, structure
or facility is on a corner lot, address numbers shall face the street
named in the official address as designated by the United States Postal
Service.
J.Â
The Chief of Police shall establish, distribute and
cause the enforcement of rules and regulations, subject to the provisions
of the section, as from time to time he deems it necessary for the
implementation of this chapter.
C.Â
Alarm users with newly installed alarm systems shall
receive one additional excused false alarm during the first 45 days
of use, beginning with the date of activation, for the purpose of
adjustments and corrections in the alarm system. Upon request, the
alarm user shall provide proof of alarm system acquisition and installation.
This one additional excused false alarm shall be in addition to the
five nonchargeable false alarms permitted each alarm user during the
calendar year.
D.Â
Any alarm user who has been assessed a fee as provided for in Subsection A herein may appeal such assessment to the Chief of Police or his or her designee by filing a written notice of appeal with the Chief of Police within 10 days of receipt of the notice that such fee is due. The filing of such notice shall stay the effect of such assessment until a hearing is held before the Chief of Police or his or her designee. The Chief of Police or his or her designee shall have the power to uphold or set aside the assessment of such fees. An alarm user found to be in disagreement with the decision of the Chief of Police may appeal the decision to the City Commission.
A.Â
It is unlawful for any person to program an automatic
dialing device to select a primary or secondary trunkline.
B.Â
It is unlawful for an alarm owner or user to fail
to disconnect or reprogram any automatic dialing device which is programmed
to select a primary or secondary trunkline within 12 hours of receipt
of written notice from the Chief of Police that an automatic dialing
device is so programmed.
