§ 20-452. False alarms.

(a)

Definitions.

(1)

False alarm means the activation of a fire, burglar, robbery, or other similar alarm system through inadvertence, electrical or mechanical failure, malfunction, improper installation, improper maintenance, or the negligence of the owner, lessee, or anyone otherwise in control of the system, or of his/her employees or agents, resulting in a response by Horry County public safety personnel. This does not include alarms caused by unusually violent conditions of nature, other extraordinary circumstances beyond the control of the alarm user, or by unauthorized tampering with an alarm system by anyone other than the alarm user or his agent(s). An alarm is false when, upon determination of the responding public safety official(s), there is no evidence of the existence of the condition or activity the alarm was designed to detect when the alarm activated, and no evidence of violent conditions or other extraordinary circumstances as noted above.

(2)

Alarm system means any single device or assembly of equipment and devices, mechanical or electrical, designed for the detection of fire or of unauthorized entry on or into any premises, or for alerting others of the commission of an unlawful act, and when activated causes an audible and/or visual signal and/or transmits a signal or message to which public safety personnel are expected to respond or which would imply to a reasonable person that public safety personnel are needed at the alarm source to address a potential public safety concern.

(3)

Alarm user means a person, firm, partnership, company, association, corporation, other legal entity, or owner, tenant, lessee, or occupant, or their agent(s) owning, leasing, or operating an alarm system, or who is/are in control of any building, structure or facility where an alarm system is present.

(4)

Response means the dispatch of public safety personnel to the premises where an alarm system has been activated.

(5)

Year means a twelve-month (three hundred sixty-five (365) day) period.

(b)

Duties of an alarm user.

(1)

To ensure the proper installation and functioning of alarms and alarm systems;

(2)

To maintain the premises and the alarm system in a manner that will reduce or eliminate false alarms;

(3)

To respond or cause a representative or other responsible party to respond to the alarm system's location within thirty (30) minutes upon notification from public safety officials of the need to deactivate a malfunctioning alarm system; and

(4)

To ensure that an alarm is not manually activated by the alarm user or any other person for any reason other than an occurrence of an event that the alarm system was intended to report.

(c)

False alarm procedure.

(1)

Whenever Horry County public safety personnel respond to an activated alarm system, the official in charge of the incident shall determine if the response was caused by a false alarm and shall indicate that fact upon the incident report.

(2)

Horry County Public Safety shall regularly review incident reports to monitor the accumulation of false alarms at any one location. When two (2) false alarms have occurred at the same location within one (1) year, Horry County Public Safety shall notify the alarm user by letter, citing the location and date of each false alarm. The letter shall recommend that appropriate action be taken on the part of the alarm user to alleviate the causes of false alarms and shall include a statement that an accumulation of more than two (2) false alarms within a year shall result in violation of this section.

(3)

Three (3) false alarms occurring at one (1) location within a year, or violation of any other provision of this section, constitutes an infraction as set forth in subsection 1-8(b) of this Code, subjecting the alarm user to a fine of two hundred dollars ($200.00), plus assessments. Each additional false alarm within that year shall constitute a separate infraction. However, no alarm user shall be charged with accumulating more than one (1) false alarm in any twenty-four-hour period.

(d)

Evidence of repair accepted in lieu of fee. An alarm user may submit, within ten (10) days of the date of notification of an infraction, evidence that a malfunctioning system has been repaired, or that appropriate and sufficient steps have been taken otherwise to eliminate the incidents of false alarms, e.g., evidence such as a receipt from a licensed alarm business with a statement of repairs made to the system. If such evidence is satisfactory to the county, the county may request that the court dismiss the charge.

(Ord. No. 103-10, § 1, 2-1-11; Ord. No. 62-18, § 1, 9-4-18)

State law reference

S.C. Code, section 16-17-570.