Coos County Code

SECTION 11.01.010 PURPOSE

  1. The purpose of this ordinance is to establish that the offense of certain County ordinances constitute a violation subject to enforcement by citation, and to set forth the procedures to be used for the enforcement of such violations.

  2. The enforcement procedures set forth in this division shall be in addition to and not in lieu of, all other civil and criminal enforcement authority delegated to the County by law.

SECTION 11.01.020 DEFINITIONS

  1. As used in this Division the terms “enforcement officer,” “violation,” and “violation proceeding,”have the meanings set forth in ORS 153.005, as may subsequently be amended.

  2. The term “Board” shall mean the Coos County Board of Commissioners.

  3. The term “County” shall mean Coos County, a political subdivision of the State of Oregon.

  4. The term “Prosecutor” shall mean either the District Attorney, County Counsel, or their designee.

SECTION 11.01.030 VIOLATIONS DESCRIBED

  1. An offense is a violation under this Division if:

    1. The offense is the failure to comply with a County ordinance that provides that the offense is a violation enforceable under this division; or,

    2. The offense is the failure of any person to comply with a County ordinance that either requires or prohibits specific conduct.

  2. Violations are classified for the purpose of sentencing, in accordance with ORS 153.012, into the following categories:

    1. Class A violations;

    2.  Class B violations;

    3. Class C violations;

    4. Class D violations;

    5. Unclassified violations as described in subsection (3) of this section; and

    6. Specific fine violations as described in subsection (4) of this section. [18-04-003L]

  3.  An offense described in subsection (1) that is designated as a violation, but does not specify the classification of the violation, is an unclassified violation. An unclassified violation is a Class B violation.

  4. A specific fine violation is any offense described in subsection (1) that:

  5. Is not designated as a crime or as a class A, B, C or D violation; and

  6. Is punishable by a specific fine as the penalty for committing the offense.

 

SECTION 11.01.040 SCHEDULE OF PENALTIES

  1. The penalty for committing a violation is a fine. The ordinance creating a violation may impose other penalties in addition to a fine, but may not impose a term of imprisonment.

  2. Except as otherwise set forth in this section, a sentence to pay a fine for a violation shall be a sentence to pay an amount not exceeding the amounts set forth in ORS 153.018 for the applicable violation class. [18-04-003L]

SECTION 11.01.050 STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS; VENUE

  1. The statute of limitations for proceedings under this Division is as provided for Violations in ORS 131.125.

  2. All violation proceedings shall be commenced in Coos County.

  3. At the discretion of the Enforcement Officer or Prosecutor, violation proceedings may be commenced in the circuit court of Coos County or, if the violation was committed within a city, in the municipal court for a city.

  4. Except as specifically provided in this Section, venue in violation proceedings in circuit courts is governed by ORS 131.305 to 131.415.

SECTION 11.01.060 ISSUANCE OF CITATIONS

  1. An enforcement officer may not arrest, stop or detain a person for the commission of a violation except to the extent provided in ORS 153.039 and ORS 810.410.

  2. An enforcement officer may only issue a violation citation:

    1. In accordance with the provisions of ORS 153.042, except as provided therein; and

    2. That conforms to the requirements of ORS 153.045, except as provided therein.

  3. The complaint in a violation citation must contain at least the information required by ORS 153.048(1).

    1. If the complaint does not conform to the requirements of this Section, the court shall set the complaint aside upon motion of the defendant made before the entry of a plea. A pretrial ruling on a motion to set aside may be appealed by the County.

    2. A court may amend a complaint in its discretion.

  4. A summons in a violation citation is sufficient if it contains the information set forth in ORS 153.051.

  5. An enforcement officer issuing a violation citation shall comply with the requirements of ORS 153.054, except as provided therein.

SECTION 11.01.070 ENFORCEMENT BY PRIVATE PARTY

  1. A person other than an enforcement officer may commence a violation proceeding by filing a complaint with a court that has jurisdiction over the alleged violation. The filing of the complaint is subject to ORS 153.048. The complaint shall be entered by the court in the court record.

  2. A complaint under this section must contain:

    1. The name of the court, the name and address of the person bringing the action and the name and address of the defendant.

    2. A statement or designation of the violation that can be readily understood by a person making a reasonable effort to do so and the date, time and place at which the violation is alleged to have occurred.

    3. A certificate signed by the complainant stating that the complainant believes that the named defendant committed the violation specifically identified in the complaint and that the complainant has reasonable grounds for that belief. A certificate conforming to this Section shall be deemed equivalent of a sworn complaint. Complaints filed under this Section are subject to the penalties provided in ORS 153.990.

  3. Upon the filing of a complaint under this Section, the court shall cause a summons to be delivered to the defendant and shall deliver a copy of the complaint to the District Attorney and County Counsel for the county in which the complaint is filed. The court may require any enforcement officer to serve the summons.

  4. If the complaint does not conform to the requirements of this Section, the court shall set it aside upon motion of the defendant made before the entry of a plea. A pretrial ruling on a motion to set aside may be appealed by the state.

  5. A court may, acting in its sole discretion, amend a complaint filed under the provisions of this Section.

  6. A court shall dismiss a complaint filed under this Section upon the motion of the Prosecutor if:

    1. The Prosecutor has brought a proceeding against the defendant named in the complaint or intends to bring a proceeding against the defendant named in the complaint; and

    2. The proceeding is brought by the Prosecutor by reason of the same conduct alleged in the complaint.

 

SECTION 11.01.080 VIOLATION PROCEEDINGS; JUDGMENT; FINES

The provisions of ORS 153.061 to 153.145, shall apply to violation proceedings brought under this Division, except that all references to district attorney or city attorney in the foregoing statutes shall be amended to Prosecutor, as that term is defined in this Division.

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