Request By:
Gerald T. Kemper, Esq.
City Attorney, City of Owenton
102 N. Main Street
Owenton, Kentucky 40359
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Thomas R. Emerson, Assistant Attorney General
This is in reply to your letter raising a question concerning the correct procedures to be utilized in connection with the prosecution of parking violations in the city of Owenton. On what you refer to as the "tickets" is a place for the license plate number of the vehicle involved as well as places for the time of the violation and the amount of the fine to be paid.
You state the county attorney has advised the city that in order to execute proper "parking tickets" the officer issuing the ticket must see the operator park the vehicle, fail to put money in the meter and then wait until the operator returns before issuing such "citation for violations." The county attorney further states that having the license number checked by the state registration system is not enough information to summons the owner of the vehicle before a court to answer charges.
You are apparently using the terms "parking ticket" and "citation" synonymously when in fact they do not mean the same thing. KRS 431.015(1) provides in part as follows:
"A peace officer may issue a citation instead of making an arrest for a misdemeanor committed in his presence, if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the person being cited will appear to answer the charge. The citation shall provide that the defendant shall appear within a designated time."
KRS 431.015 further provides that a peace officer may issue a citation instead of making an arrest for a violation committed in his presence. He may not make a physical arrest unless there are reasonable grounds to believe that the defendant will not appear at the time to be designated in the citation or unless the offense charged is a violation of certain enumerated statutory provisions. Finally, if the defendant fails to appear in response to a citation, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that he will not appear, a complaint may be made before a judge and a warrant shall issue.
While only a peace officer may issue a citation, it is not a court process and it will not bring the violator before a court. A citation cannot be issued if the alleged act of wrongdoing was not committed in the officer's presence. A citation is given to an identifiable person but it merely issues from the officer and not from the court. If the accused fails to appear in response to the citation, a complaint may be made before a judge and a warrant shall issue. See OAG 74-552, copy enclosed, as well as OAG 72-619, copy enclosed.
In OAG 74-552, at page two, we dealt with the issuance of a parking ticket and said in part that the leaving of a parking ticket on a car is not a court process. It is not a citation since a citation is given to an identifiable person. Someone other than a peace officer may issue a parking ticket and frequently the person issuing the ticket does not know who the operator of the vehicle is. A parking ticket may be left on an automobile and if the owner or operator does not respond, then a warrant or summons may be issued by a court pursuant to a complaint being made by the person issuing the parking ticket.
Thus, if a police officer issues a citation charging a person with the violation of a city ordinance or a police officer or even a "meter maid" issues a parking ticket to an illegally parked vehicle, and the person involved fails to appear in response to the citation or the parking ticket, the district court cannot acquire jurisdiction and cannot impose a fine against the person until he is properly before the court, either by way of a voluntary personal appearance or pursuant to a warrant or summons. See OAG 81-252, copy enclosed.
KRS 15.725(2) provides that "The county attorney shall attend the district court in his county and prosecute all violations of criminal and penal laws within the jurisdiction of said district court." KRS 24A.110 provides court." KRS 24A.110 provides in part that the district court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to make final disposition of all criminal matters, including violations of county, urban-county, or city ordinances or codes, except offenses denominated by statute as felonies or capital offense and offenses punishable by death or imprisonment in the penitentiary. Thus, the county attorney is required to prosecute violations of municipal ordinances in the district court. See OAG 80-34, copy enclosed.
In connection with the disposition of monies collected from parking fines, KRS 65.120 provides that all revenue generated from fees, fines and forfeitures related to parking shall continue to be retained by those governmental entities receiving such monies on December 31, 1976, unless the fine is collected as a result of action taken in the Court of Justice, in which case those fines also would go into the state treasury. Therefore, all fees, fines, forfeitures and costs in any district court case shall be collected and accounted for by the circuit court clerk and paid into the state treasury. The city does not receive fines imposed by the district court and collected by the circuit court clerk but the city, pursuant to KRS 24A.190 through 24A.192, may have funds returned to it if it qualifies under those statutes. See OAG 78-682, copy enclosed.
Since your letter deals with the general subject matter pertaining to the enforcement of parking ordinances and the prosecution of violators rather than any specific incident, we have attempted to set forth as many statutes and legal principles as possible relative to the basic problem. Hopefully this material has answered your question as to procedures to be followed in regard to this matter.