Henderson resident Lowell West told the Henderson City Council on Monday night that “someone” decided that his car is junk because it has a dent in the door during the public comment portion of the Council’s regular meeting.
Officers of the Henderson Police Department regularly check for junked, abandoned, and nuisance vehicles in the City as part of their regular duties.
“It doesn’t make sense to me,” West said.
The following criteria are used officers to determine if a vehicle is junked, abandoned, or constitutes a nuisance according the the City’s ordinance:
Junked Vehicle
The vehicle is a junked vehicle if the following apply:
Vehicle does not have a valid license plate and,
* is partially dismantled or wrecked, or
* cannot be self-propelled or moved in a manner in which it was originally intended to move, or
* is more than five (5) years old and appears to be worth less than five hundred dollars ($500.00)
Nuisance Vehicle
The vehicle is a nuisance vehicle if any of the following apply:
* There is a breeding ground or harbor for mosquitoes, insects, rats and other pest, or
* A point of heavy growth or weeds or other noxious vegetation over (8) inches in height, or
* A point of collection of pools or ponds of water, or
* A point of concentration of quantities of gasoline, oil or other flammable or explosive materials as evidence by odor or sight, or
* The vehicle has areas of confinement which cannot be operated from the inside such as trunks, hoods, etc., or
* The vehicle is so situated or located that there is a danger of its falling or turning over, or
* The vehicle is a point of collection of garbage, food, waste, animal waste, or any other rotten or putrid matter of any kind, or
* The vehicle has sharp parts thereof which are jagged or contain sharp edges or metal or glass
* The vehicle has been specifically declared a health and safety hazard and a public nuisance by the City Council in that (fill in the blank)________________________
Abandoned Vehicle
The vehicle is an abandoned vehicle if any of the following apply:
* is left upon a public street or highway in violation of a law or ordinance prohibiting parking; or
* is left on a public street or highway for longer than seven (7) days; or
* s left on property owned or operated by the City for longer than twenty-four (24) hours; or
* is left on private property without the consent of the owner, occupant, or lessee thereof, for longer than two (2) hours (and Request for Remove Form is signed and in file).
City Manager Jerry Moss responded by informing the Council that the automobile in question would not start. West rejoined by stating that the car would start but he had lost the key.
Moss informed members that he had asked West to move the car to another location and to cover it in order to solve the problem.
West stated that he would not cover the car. He went on to say that the ordinance needs to be redone.
“A police officer being an auto mechanic is like me playing at being a lawyer,” West said. He indicated that he would prefer that the police arrest murderers.
The Mayor and the Council determined that West should continue with the appeals process. The process is structured so that appeals are made to the City Council through the Chief of Police.