By Cary Shuman
Winthrop Police Lieutenant Paul DeLeo has announced that due to the increasing number of false burglar alarms in the town, the department will start enforcing the town ordinance [by-law] for malfunctioning or needless alarms – which means fines will be assessed beginning with the fourth false alarm at a home or business.
DeLeo said the enforcement of the long-standing ordinance will begin today [October 1, 2009].
“We’re going to begin to enforce this by-law very thoroughly due to the increase in alarms and the decrease in [police] personnel,†said DeLeo. “Every burglar alarm that goes off – be it a house or a store of whatever, we have to respond to it.â€
DeLeo said that the department has noticed that it is receiving many alarm calls and “several houses and businesses have alarms that are constantly going off.â€
The fines will be assessed to homes and businesses as follows:
The fourth false alarm in a 12-month period will result in a $100 fine; every false alarm after that will result in a $100 fine; after the 20th false alarm, a $200 fine will be assessed.
Homeowners and business owners will receive a warning notice from the Police Department after the second false alarm.
“If they don’t rectify whatever the problem is, when the fourth false alarm occurs, they will be fined $100,†said DeLeo.
The lieutenant said a few years ago the department contacted a number of alarm companies. “They all said the same thing: alarms only go off if someone is breaking into a home or business; there is a malfunction; or the people using the alarm aren’t doing it properly.
“So if your child or your new employee doesn’t know what he’s doing, he’s going to cost you money – it’s as simple as that,†DeLeo said.
According to the ordinance, a malfuction or needless alarm is defined as: any failure of the alarm system to operate in a normal or usual manner, namely, for the purpose of signaling an alarm which requires the presence of police to protect life, property, and safety of persons from harm or damage.