Request By:
Honorable Damon R. Talley
City Attorney
City of Horse Cave
Professional Arts Building
207 E. Main Street
Horse Cave, Kentucky 42729
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in answer to your letter of April 30 in which you, on behalf of the mayor and the city council of the city of Horse Cave [a city of the fifth class], request an opinion concerning the following:
"1. May the Mayor and the City Council legally instruct the City's Police Officers to refuse to answer calls from individuals and businesses located outside the City limits?
"2. May the City charge individuals and businesses located outside the City limits for calls made to those individuals and businesses by the City's Police Officers? "
Our response to your initial question would be in the affirmative and we enclose copies of OAG's 79-245, 70-378 and 70-287 which would apply to fifth class cities as well as fourth to which they were addressed. You will note that the police departments of cities of the fourth and fifth class have countywide jurisdiction under KRS 95.740 and 95.786 (peculiar to fifth class cities). You will also note that this office has taken the position that even though the police department has countywide jurisdiction, the city legislative body which controls the department, may restrict the operation of the police department to the city limits by an appropriate ordinance, except where the police officers are pursuing a person who has committed a violation of any public offense, including violations of city ordinances.
Our response to your second question would be in the negative since we find no authority for the city to levy a charge for answering police calls made by individuals and businesses outside of the city limits. Cities are limited to those powers that are specifically granted or implied by some specific grants. See