§290‑8  Derelict vehicle.  Avehicle shall be deemed a derelict vehicle by the administrative head of thecounty agency designated to carry out section 290-1, or by the executivedirector or a representative of the executive director of the Hawaii public housingauthority in the case of a vehicle that has been abandoned on property owned,managed, or administered by the authority, if major parts have been removed ormaterial damage to the vehicle has rendered the vehicle inoperable and one ofthe following conditions exists:

(1)  The vehicle is registered for the currentregistration period and the registered and legal owners no longer reside at theaddresses on record with the county director of finance;

(2)  The vehicle has been registered for the currentor previous registration period and the registered and legal owners disclaimownership;

(3)  The vehicle identification number and licenseplates have been removed so as to nullify efforts to locate or identify thecurrent registered and legal owners;

(4)  The vehicle has not been registered for thecurrent or previous registration periods; or

(5)  The vehicle registration records of the countydirector of finance contain no record that the vehicle has ever been registeredin the county.

Prior to authorizing the removal of a derelictvehicle, the administrative head of the county agency designated to carry outsection 290-1 or the executive director or a representative of the executivedirector of the Hawaii public housing authority in the case of vehicles thathave been abandoned on property owned, managed, or operated by the authority,shall notify the county chief of police only if the vehicle is reported stolenor otherwise needed for police investigation. [L 1971, c 28, pt of §1; am L1983, c 96, §1; am L 1985, c 21, §1; am L 1987, c 77, §1; am L 1992, c 238, §2;am L 1996, c 58, §1; am L 1997, c 350, §14; am L 2005, c 196, §26(a); am L2006, c 147, §2 and c 180, §16]

 

Case Notes

 

  Plaintiff asserted that this section and §290-9 wereunconstitutional and that the municipality was subject to liability under 42U.S.C. §1983 on the grounds that an ordinance implemented the sections andtherefore constituted an official policy statement by the municipality; nobasis found for imposing liability on the municipality under 42 U.S.C. §1983. 333 F. Supp. 2d 942.

  This section and §290-9 are not facially unconstitutionalexcept for condition (6) set forth in this section, which allows for theimmediate disposition, without notice, of derelict cars older than ten yearsand unconstitutionally violates the requirements of due process.  333 F. Supp.2d 942.