§ 10-252. False alarms.

(a)

Responsibility. Each person holding a permit for an automatic protection system or signaling device shall be responsible for any false alarm transmitted by such system or device.

(b)

Records. The police department shall maintain a record of all false alarms transmitted. Pursuant to section 10-289, the permit may be revoked or suspended for the operation of any automatic protection system involved in the transmission of the false alarms in excess of four such alarms in a 30-day period.

(c)

Charges. A permit holder shall be charged an additional fee, as specified in the regularly adopted fee schedule of the town, for each false alarm in excess of one in a 30-day period transmitted by any permitted automatic protection system. The charge shall be remitted to the town by such permit holder upon receipt of a statement for the charge.

(d)

Deliberate false alarms. Any person who intentionally or deliberately and without just cause activates an automatic protection system in a nonemergency situation shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor pursuant to G.S. 14-286 and section 1-6. Nothing contained in this section shall apply to the periodic testing of alarms after the appropriate coordination with and the approval of the police or fire department, whichever is appropriate. Testing the automatic protection system without such prior coordination and approval is unlawful.

(Code 1990, § 6-127)