§290‑8  Derelict vehicle.  A
vehicle shall be deemed a derelict vehicle by the administrative head of the
county agency designated to carry out section 290-1, or by the executive
director or a representative of the executive director of the Hawaii public housing
authority 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 or
material damage to the vehicle has rendered the vehicle inoperable and one of
the following conditions exists:



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



(2)  The vehicle has been registered for the current
or previous registration period and the registered and legal owners disclaim
ownership;



(3)  The vehicle identification number and license
plates have been removed so as to nullify efforts to locate or identify the
current registered and legal owners;



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



(5)  The vehicle registration records of the county
director of finance contain no record that the vehicle has ever been registered
in the county.



Prior to authorizing the removal of a derelict
vehicle, the administrative head of the county agency designated to carry out
section 290-1 or the executive director or a representative of the executive
director of the Hawaii public housing authority in the case of vehicles that
have been abandoned on property owned, managed, or operated by the authority,
shall notify the county chief of police only if the vehicle is reported stolen
or otherwise needed for police investigation. [L 1971, c 28, pt of §1; am L
1983, 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 L
2006, c 147, §2 and c 180, §16]



 



Case Notes



 



  Plaintiff asserted that this section and §290-9 were
unconstitutional and that the municipality was subject to liability under 42
U.S.C. §1983 on the grounds that an ordinance implemented the sections and
therefore constituted an official policy statement by the municipality; no
basis 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 unconstitutional
except for condition (6) set forth in this section, which allows for the
immediate disposition, without notice, of derelict cars older than ten years
and unconstitutionally violates the requirements of due process.  333 F. Supp.
2d 942.