Policy Text
Towing Unregistered and PNO (P
urrent law allows Department personnel to tow a vehicle that has an expired registration of over
elated Vehicle Code SectionsTowing Unregistered and PNO (P
urrent law allows Department personnel to tow a vehicle that has an expired registration of over
elated Vehicle Code Sections
TRAINING BULLETIN
Evaluation Coordinator: Support Operations Division Commander
Automatic Revision Cycle: 3 Years
partment Training Bulletins shall be used to advise members of current police techniques and
procedures and shall constitute official policy.” Index Number: III-E.4
Alpha Index: Towing Unregistered Vehicles Effective Date:
1 Sep 08
“De
lanned Non-Operation) Vehicles lanned Non-Operation) Vehicles
C Csix (6) months. [(22651(o) California Vehicle Code (CVC)]
six (6) months. [(22651(o) California Vehicle Code (CVC)]
R R
604 (a) CVC – Nonoperated Vehicles
Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (d), prior to the expiration of the
4
registration of a vehicle, if that registration is not to be renewed prior to its expiration,
the owner of the vehicle shall file, under penalty of perjury, a certification that the
vehicle will not be operated, moved, or left standing upon a highway without first
making an application for registration of the vehicle, including full payment of all fees .
The certification is valid until the vehicl e's registration is renewed pursuant to
subdivision (c).
000 (a) (1) CVC – Registration Required
(a)(1) No person shall drive, move, or leave standing upon a highway4
, or in an offstreet
public parking facility, any motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, pole or pipe dolly, or logging dolly, unless it is registered
and the appropriate fees have been paid under this
code or registered under the permanent tra iler identification program, except that an
off-highway motor vehicle which displays an identification plate or device issued by the department pursuant to Section 38010 may be driven, moved, or left standing in an offstreet public parking facility without bein g registered or paying registration fees.
(3) This subdivision does not apply to any motor vehicle stored in a privately owned
2651 CVC – Circumstances Permitting Removal
Any peace officer, as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3
offstreet parking facility by, or with the express permission of, the owner of the
privately owned offstreet parking facility.
2
of Part 2 of the Penal Code, or any regularly employed and salaried employee, who is
engaged in directing traffic or enforcing parking laws and regulations, of a city, county,
or jurisdiction of a state agency in which a vehicle is located, may remove a vehicle
located within the territorial limits in which the officer or employee may act, under any of the following circumstances:
2
Towing Unregistered and PNO (Planned Non- Operation) Vehicles, Index Number III-E.4
22651 (o) (1) CVC
When any vehicle is found or operated upon a highway, any public lands, or an
offstreet parking facility with a registration expiration date in excess of six months
before the date it is found or operated on the highway, public lands, or the offstreet
parking facility. However, whenever the vehi cle is occupied, only a peace officer, as
defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2 of the Penal
Code, may remove the vehicle. For the purposes of this subdivision, the vehicle shall
be released to the owner or person in control of the vehicle only after the owner or person furnishes the storing law enforcement agency with proof of current registration
and a currently valid driver's li cense to operate the vehicle.
Recent case law (Clement v. City of Glendale
(9th Cir. 2008) 518 Fed.3d 1090) has restricted this
authority if the vehicle has a Planned Non-Operation (PNO) on file with DMV. The courts have held that the member/ employee must attempt to notify the owner of the vehicle that it is parked in
violation of the valid PNO certificate, when there is no other parking violation being committed,
before it is towed.
22651(o) CVC Violators May Be Towed I mmediately If Found on a Public Street
If the DMV registration does not show PNO registration status, the vehicle may be removed
immediately1 if found on a public street.
PNO Violators Procedures
1. Checking PNO Status
A registration check on a vehicle will reveal if a PNO certificate is on file (Appendix A).
Officers will find a line that states a PNO is on file and the date the PNO was filed above
where the expiration date is normally listed on the registration on the MDT display or CLETS
terminal. The information may also be obtained from the Communications Division.
2. When Non-Registration Parking Offense is Being Committed
If the PNO vehicle is violating other Vehicle Code sections which allow for immediate
removal, (red zone/blocking a driveway, etc) th en the vehicle can be removed immediately.
The towing member/employee shall include the PNO offense on the citation, but will list the
non-registration violation as the towing authority .
1 Scofield v. City of Hillsborough (1988 9th Cir.) 862 Fed.2d 759
3
1 Sep 08 ● Oakland Police Department
3. Issue Citation With Notification of PNO Violation before