Ticketing Question- Code violations

[JimmyTreeX]

I have a question about issuing tickets for non-compliance.

When performing an inspection, especially for tenant complaints, you can end up citing 10-20-30 violations. I’m not sure how many of you are familiar with slum lords, but my city is full of them, so unfortunately landlords not fixing ANY of the violations, no matter how many citations I send, is somewhat common for me. After a “final notice” is sent and the LL still refuses to comply, we have no choice but to issue an appearance ticket. The way I see it, even though there are dozens of violations, I look at is as a single case. For over 16 years I have been issuing a single ticket (for starters) for failing to comply with all the code violations found during that inspection. I would cite the top 5-6 worst violations on the ticket (the code chapter and section), and ”reason” would be “Failing to comply with housing code violations.” In court our starting fine for non-compliance is $250, so we would ask for “$250 and compliance on all violations.”

Last month, after doing it this way for over 16 years, our own City Attorney all of the sudden had a problem with this. He said we have to start issuing tickets for each individual violation found. Obviously he doesn’t expect us to issue 30 tickets for a single case, but pick and choose some to issue individual tickets on. So my question is, how do you do it? Do you have a way where you can issue an appearance ticket with multiple citations on it? Or do you have to issue an individual ticket per individual violation? Or do you have any advice?


2 side notes:

1- I know if a Judge decides to accept it, then it’s acceptable. Our Judge has never called this out, but I obviously don‘t want to have a dispute with our attorney.
2- My local ordinance cites all our housing violations under the same chapter, 176, so do you think it’s feasible to issue a ticket under just chapter 176, without any sub-Sections?

Thank you.

 

[Inspector 102]

I think the main concern would be can the fine be applied to each violation or will the judge consider the totality of the violation as one fine. Changes a $250 fine to a potential $5000 fine plus. In our area, if there is not a ticket, it is not considered in the total amount of fine. Our local ordinance also states "up to $2500, so that would be a limit a judge could enforce but even then some landlords do not care, they just never pay and our attorney has not gone after them, just places a lien on the property.

 

[e hilton]

so do you think it’s feasible to issue a ticket under just chapter 176, without any sub-Sections?

I would think it would be helpful to include the sub section number.

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

Last month, after doing it this way for over 16 years, our own City Attorney all of the sudden had a problem with this. He said we have to start issuing tickets for each individual violation found. Obviously he doesn’t expect us to issue 30 tickets for a single case, but pick and choose some to issue individual tickets on. So my question is, how do you do it? Do you have a way where you can issue an appearance ticket with multiple citations on it? Or do you have to issue an individual ticket per individual violation? Or do you have any advice?

Ask your local chief of police to stop by your department for an hour some afternoon and explain how traffic officers handle offenders with multiple violations (such as perhaps exceeding the posted limit, failure to drive in an established lane, changing lanes without a signal, and perhaps a burned out taillight as a final violation. I think a cop would issue one ticket, but that ticket would list each violation and the relevant section of the motor vehicle code.

I know when our state's chief prosecutor ran annual classes for code officials (pre-COVID), every years she hammered into us that we have to cite code sections. "If you don't have a code citation, you don't have a violation."

 

[JimmyTreeX]

Thank you for the responses.

I’m going to try something and see what happens. Our housing chapter (176) is broken down into Interior, Exterior, Grounds, Plumbing, etc.. (obviously this is not unique, just trying to explain), so as an example, the interior violations are all in chapter 176, Section 18. Section is then broken down into sub-sections for specific interior violations (a, b, c, etc..). An example being 176-18A which is specifically about the interior being maintained free of dampness (Again, not unique, I know it’s the same for all or most of you).

So when I have a case where I have 15 interior citations, I’m going to issue a ticket as 176-18, Failure to repair interior housing violations. I will then specify the vios I found in the long form deposition. I think this will be fine, but we’ll see.

Thanks again

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

Going back to the advisory from our state's prosecutor, I am of the opinion that you need to cite the specific section that applies to each violation. Otherwise, the defendant can't respond in any meaningful way in court.

Example -- many years ago, as an architect and code consultant, I was engaged by a client who owned an old, inner city building with a small convenience store on the ground floor and three stories of apartments above. A fire inspector had issued a violation notice listing over 50 alleged violations -- and not a single reference to a code section. I met with the fire inspector, NFPA 101 in hand, and after a half hour that list of fifty-plus violations had been reduced to about six. That's was a manageable number, and with specifics on the problems we were able to address them.

You can't just throw a book at them and expect them to sort of what the violations are. You have to tell them.

I also have a philosophical problem with choosing 'x' number of violations and only citing those. Let's say you choose to cite 5 out of 30 violations. Let's say that a miracle occurs and the slumlord actually remediates those violations. Then you come back next year and cite five more violations -- which were there the year before. I would expect the landlord to object that you're harassing him. And, in a way, he's right. It's like the proverbial "death by a thousand cuts." I think the proper approach is to cite ALL the violations, and then the city and the landlord can agree on a time table for remediating all the issues. It may be a 5-year plan. If a number of issues are relatively minor, it may even be a 10-year plan. But there's a plan on the record, so you're covered because you haven't overlooked anything, and if the landlord fails to meet any of the interim milestones in the agreed-upon remediation plan, you can take him back into court for failing to do what he agreed to do.

Then let the judge carry the responsibility of either hammering the landlord, or letting him skate.

 

[Inspector Gift]

Jimmy, we had a similar problem. And very little was accomplished until we started to list each and every violation, and each day. It was a pain at first. However, the violations were soon remedied.

Follow the advice of your attorney and list each item as a separate offense. It will allow the judge to see the true scope of the problems and give impetus to achieving compliance. Until it becomes a problem for the judge, it will be allowed to continue.

One last note: Building Code violations are subject to investigation FEES. The Municipal Code violations are subject to FINES. The judge has authority to waive fines, but NOT FEES. Before we learned this the hard way when we lost thousands of dollars in fines, and no compensation for the many hours and days, all because the judge waived the fines.

 

[fatboy]

For us, all violations were include in one citation, but if not corrected, we could write the same violations, daily. If you wanted to do the brain damage of the paperwork.

 

[SCBO1]

If you look at the IPMC section 304.1.1 unsafe conditions: and you had let's say 4 out of the 13 items listed would you just list the code section and only one sub-number? Or would the whole section be the GOS citation number.

There's a lot of law or ordinances written where there is a code section and several sub-numbers under that section.

Puzzled

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

If you look at the IPMC section 304.1.1 unsafe conditions: and you had let's say 4 out of the 13 items listed would you just list the code section and only one sub-number? Or would the whole section be the GOS citation number.

There's a lot of law or ordinances written where there is a code section and several sub-numbers under that section.

Puzzled

Ask a cop how they have to write motor vehicle citations. Our state's prosecutor used to tell fire marshals to carry ticket books that were to be just like the ticket books traffic cops carried.

 

[SCBO1]

Yankee,

A lot of the city's here had to change to the state's ticket codes the State went to a new computer ticket code system. Some of the code violation charge codes have changed and listing each violation was now required here too. Our city court is still allowing IPMC sections to be used.

That's probably going to change soon.

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

I did a ride-along with a municipal police officer as part of a citizen's police academy several years before the COVID-19 pandemic landed on our shores, but there were no traffic stops while I was in the patrol vehicle so I don't know how computerized that aspect of police work is around here. The essential point, though, isn't whether or not the system for issuing citations is or isn't computerized. The point is that, according to our state's chief prosecuting attorney, we need to cite each violation by code section.

I've been in court as an expert witness for both plaintiffs and defendants in construction cases, and I've been a defendant as a building official. I know that most judges are overloaded and they don't like courtroom time to be wasted. In dealing with a slumlord, I think it should be expected that most cases will go to court. It's not unreasonable for a judge to look at a list of alleged violations and ask the code official where the code imposes the requirement for violation number 'x.' If your answer is "Somewhere in chapter 176" I don't think the judge is going to be very happy. In fact, if section 18 of chapter 176 includes multiple violations, I don't think a judge will be overly pleased with a catch-all citation to 176-18.

I dunno. Maybe your judges are more lenient than ours. I would expect that a notice of violation(s) that doesn't list the specific citation for each violation would be thrown out of court.

 

[tmurray]

Going back to the advisory from our state's prosecutor, I am of the opinion that you need to cite the specific section that applies to each violation. Otherwise, the defendant can't respond in any meaningful way in court.

This is correct based on my experience. These processes are intended to encourage people to fix their mistakes. They cannot fix their mistakes if there is no tie-in to the section being violated. This is also a violation of procedural fairness as you are suggesting. In Western law, people typically have the right to be explicitly informed of what they are charged with doing so they may be able to mount a defense.