HomeMy WebLinkAboutordinance.council.026-98 ORDINANCE NO. ~, SERIES OF 1998
IAN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN,
COLORADO, PROHIBITING THEFT AND ESTABLISHING ELEMENTS OF
PRIMA FACIE EVIDENCE OF THEFT ' ~
WHEREAS, the people of-the City of Aspen are damaged by the occurrence of "theft,"
and
WHEREAS, the City of Aspen has no munic!pal ordinance prohibiting the offense of
"theft," the absence of which requires all theft charges brough~ by the Aspen Police
Department to be prose,cuted in Pitkin County COurt and no~ in the Municipal Cou,rt of
the City of Aspen; and
WHEREAS, the efficiency of the Aspen Police Department in prosecuting "theft" cases
'would be increased significantly if an ordinance existed which allowed prosecution of
"theft" charges in the Municipal .Court of the City of Aspen, and
WHEREAS, pursuant tO Sdction 18-4-401(8) of the Colorado Revised Statutes 1997,
as amended, a municipality shall have concurrent power to prohibit theft, by ordinance~
where the value of the thing involved is less than four hundred dollars.
NOW, THEREFORE, BEIT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF ASPEN, COLORADO, THAT:
Section 1.
That the Municipal Code of the City of Aspen, Colorado, is hereby amended by adding
a section which shall read as follows:
15.04.600 Theft prohibited
(a). It shall be unlawful for any person to cpmmfi~ a theft. A person commits theft when
he knowin[~ly obtains or exercises control over anything of value of another without
authorization, or by threat or deception, and.'
(1) Intends to deprive the other person permanently of the use or benefit of the thing !
of value, or
(2) Knowingly uses,~conceals, or abahdons the thing of value in such manner as to
-.deprive the other person peFrnanently of its use or benefit, or
(3) Uses, conceals, or abandons the thing of value intending that such use, co/tCealment,
o~' abandonment will deprive ~the other person permanently of its use and benefit, or
(4) Demands any cohsideration to which he or she i,s not legally entitled aS ~a condition
of restoring the thing of value to the other person.
(b) For the purposes of this section. a thing of value is that of "another" if anyone other
than the defendant has a possessory or proprietary interest therein.
(c) For the purposes of this section. the value of the thing involved shall be less than
four hundred dollars ($400. 00~.
Section 2.
This ordinance shall .not have any effect on existing litigation and shall not operate as an
abatement of any action or proceeding now pending utfder or by virtue of the ordinances
mended as herein provided, and the same shall be constru,ed and concluded under such
pridr ordinances.
Section 3.
If an3~ section, subsection, sentence, ctause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is for any
reason held invalid or unconstitutional in a court of competent jurisdiction, such portion
shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision and shall not affect the
validity of the remaining portions thereof.
Section 4.
A public hearing on the ordinance shall be held on the.,~tday of ~ . ,1998,
in the City Council Chambers, Aspen City Hall, ! 30 South Galena, Aspen, Colorado. -
INTRODUCED, READ AND ORbERED PUBLISHED as provided by law by the
City Council of the City of Aspen on the/_3_ day of ~b~ .~ ,1998.
~TTEST:
~City Clerk
FINALLY adopted, passed, and approved this ~t-day of ~
/
1998.
~ATTEST:- _
.~City Clerk