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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-07-26; City Council; CS-153; AMENDING MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING DECORUM ENFORCEMENT...EXHIBIT 1 ORDINANCE NO. __ C=S=---""'"'15"-'3'-- 2 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF 3 CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING CHAPTER 1.20 OF THE CARLSBAD MUNICIPAL CODE, SECTIONS 1.20.310, 1.20.320 4 AND 1.20.330 AND ADDING SECTION 1.20.302 TO THE CARLSBAD MUNICIPAL CODE-ALL RELATING TO DECORUM 5 AND ENFORCEMENT OF DECORUM AND AMENDING SECTION 1.08.010 OF CHAPTER 1.08 OF THE CARLSBAD MUNICIPAL 6 CODE RELATED TO DESIGNATED PENALITIES 7 WHEREAS, On August 24, 2010 Richard Shapiro was arrested pursuant to California 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Penal Code section 403 for disturbing an open and public City Council meeting; and WHEREAS, the District Attorney initially filed a single count criminal complaint against Mr. Shapiro for violating Penal Code section 403; and WHEREAS, the District Attorney, exercised its independent discretion and filed an amended criminal complaint against Mr. Shapiro that alleged one misdemeanor count of violating Penal Code section 403 and three misdemeanor counts (two to four) of violating Carlsbad Municipal Code (CMC) section 1.20.330(b); and WHEREAS, CMC section 1.20.330(b) states that a violation of this section is a misdemeanor; and WHEREAS, Mr. Shapiro was arraigned on the amended four count criminal complaint; and WHEREAS, the District Attorney subsequently exercised its discretion and dismissed the first count (P.C. § 403) of the amended criminal complaint and reduced the three CMC section 1.20.330(b) misdemeanor counts to infractions; and WHEREAS, the District Attorney stated that notwithstanding the language of 1.20.330(b) (a violation of this section is a misdemeanor), CMC section 1.08.010(a) (which was amended in 2007) takes precedence over section 1.20.330(b) thereby making the first three violations of section 1.20.330, within a 12-month period, infractions and only on the fourth and subsequent violations, would the violation be charged as a misdemeanor; and WHEREAS, Mr. Shapiro's criminal case generated interest by the American Civil Liberties 21 Union (ACLU); and 22 WHEREAS, the ACLU sent a letter to the District Attorney alleging that CMC sections 1.20.320 and 1.20.330 (enacted in 1979) are vague and unenforceable; and 23 WHEREAS, the District Attorney stated that it has a policy of not prosecuting infractions 24 due to limited resources and therefore, the District Attorney exercised its discretion and dismissed the three CMC infractions; and 25 WHEREAS, notwithstanding the arguments of the ACLU or Mr. Shapiro, the City wants to 26 ensure that its decorum sections are constitutional, enforceable, and void of any confusion whether a violation constitutes a misdemeanor or an infraction; and 27 THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California, does ordain as follows: 28 1 2 3 1.20.302 - Addressing the council—Spokesperson for group of persons.4 5 6 11 17 19 21 EXHIBIT 1 SECTION 1: That Chapter 1.20 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is amended to read as follows: 1.20.300 - Purpose and Intent - Addressing the council. 1.20.305 - Opportunity for public to address the council—Nonagenda items. 1.20.310 - Decorum and order—Council and city staff. 1.20.320 - Public attendance and Audience - Decorum and order. 1.20.330 - Enforcement of decorum. 7 8 SECTION 2: That section 1.20.300 of Chapter 1.20 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is amended and renumbered to read as follows:9 1.20.302 - Addressing the council - Spokesperson for group of persons.10 (a) In order to expedite matters and to avoid repetitious presentations, whenever any group of persons wishes to address the council on the same subject matter, it shall be proper for the presiding officer to require that a spokesperson be chosen from the group to address the council. 12 If additional matters are to be presented by any other members of the group, the presiding officer may limit the number of such persons and limit the presentation to information not already presented by the group spokesperson. 14 (b) For items other than those listed on the agenda for public hearing, groups of persons shall be limited to a total presentation period of ten minutes. The presiding officer shall first call for representatives of groups in favor of the matter under consideration and then for those persons in opposition to the matter under consideration, and thereafter shall allow a rebuttal time limited to five minutes to the proponents who shall confine rebuttal remarks to answering comments made in opposition and not the introduction of new testimony. Further time may be granted by majority vote of the council. 18 SECTION 3: That Chapter 1.20 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is amended to add section 20 1.20.300 to read as follows: 1.20.300 - Purpose and Intent - Addressing the council. 22 Our society has long recognized that it is important for citizens of any community to have 23 the ability to address their elected officials. To that end, the City of Carlsbad has enacted decorum ordinances to facilitate such activities at council meetings. These ordinances are 24 designed to allow for public input but retain the recognition that City business and the needs of all the people necessarily require some limitations. Clearly, the more orderly a meeting, the more 25 time members of the council will have to adequately consider and address any issues raised. Dissent at public meetings is also a recognized concept in a free society. It is one of the ways in 26 which concerns about pending issues can be expressed, and without which the nature or extent of those concerns might result in less than informed decisions. But it is equally important to 27 recognize that dissent is not without limitations. If anyone who wished to move a public meeting toward a particular position could disrupt the proceedings whenever they felt moved to do so, the 28 1 2 3 4 5 6 SECTION 4: That section 1.20.310 of Chapter 1.20 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is amended 7 to read as follows: 8 1.20.310 - Decorum and order - Council and city staff. 9 While the council is in session, the council members and city staff shall observe good 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 19 22 23 24 25 26 27 EXHIBIT 1 rights of all others and the business of a city would soon stagnate and the actions themselves would tend to imperil the very freedoms we all seek. It is therefore important to remember that no one has a constitutional right to disrupt a public meeting by attempting to impose their own voice or actions in a manner that is loud, boisterous, or unruly where such conduct is substantially disruptive of the meeting itself, not in compliance with the rules of decorum set forth for the governance of such meetings, and continues after the mayor has requested the person or persons to stop. The issue in such cases is not about the content of speech, unless the content itself violates the law, but rather with the extent of disruption caused to the meeting itself by the manner and conduct of the speaker's actions. order and decorum and shall not by conversation or otherwise, improperly delay or interrupt the proceedings nor refuse to obey the directives of the mayor as authorized under this chapter. SECTION 5: That section 1.20.320 of Chapter 1.20 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is amended to read as follows: 1.20.320 - Public attendance and Audience - Decorum and order. Members of the public attending council meetings shall observe the same rules of order and decorum applicable to the city council and staff. Any person wishing to address the council is responsible for familiarizing himself/herself with the rules and ordinances applicable to council meetings. Copies of those requirements are available on file in the Office of the City Clerk and on the City's website SECTION 6: That section 1.20.330 of Chapter 1.20 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is amended 18 to read as follows: 1.20.330 - Enforcement of decorum. 20 (a) The chief of police or such member of the police department as he, or his authorized agent, may designate shall be sergeant-at-arms of the city council and said person shall attend meetings at the request of the mayor, the city manager, or a majority of the city council. He shall be available to respond to all meetings immediately upon call. He shall carry out all orders authorized under this chapter that are given by the mayor for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum at the council meetings. The sergeant-at-arms may, at any time, request assistance from other members of the police department to accomplish that purpose. Any council member may move to require the mayor to enforce the rules and the affirmative vote of a majority of the council members present shall require him to do so. (b) Any person, including any member of the council or city staff, who by voice or conduct engages in loud, boisterous, or unruly behavior that substantially disrupts a council meeting, that does not comply with the rules of decorum set forth in this chapter for governance of such meetings, and continues after the mayor has requested such person(s) to stop, is engaging in unlawful conduct and, except as set forth in subsections (c) and (d) of this section, shall constitute an infraction. 28 EXHIBIT 1 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 (c) Any person arrested under subsection (b) of this section and who thereafter returns to the same meeting and again violates the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, commits a misdemeanor. (d) Any person previously convicted under subsection (b) of this section, who again violates the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, commits a misdemeanor. SECTION 7: That section 1.08.010 of Chapter 1.08 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is amended to read as follows: 1.08.010 - Designated. (a) Whenever in Chapters 6.03, 8.16, 8.44, 8.50, 11.28 and 15.12, or as specified in Sections 1.13.040, 1.20.330(c), 1.20.330(d), 5.10.130, 6.04.130, 8.17.200(A)(1), 8.17.200(A)(2), 8.17.200(A)(3), 8.17.200(A)(4) and 17.04.070 of this code any act is prohibited or is made or declared to be unlawful or an offense, or the doing of any act is required or the failure to do any act is declared to be unlawful or a misdemeanor, the violation of any such provision is a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment unless some other fine or penalty is stated in said chapter or section. (b) Except as provided in subsection (a) of this section, whenever in this code or in any other ordinance of the city any act is prohibited or is made or declared to be unlawful or an offense, or the doing of any act is required or the failure to do any act is declared to be unlawful or a misdemeanor, the violation of any such provision of the city is, unless otherwise stated in this section, an infraction and shall be punishable by: (1) A fine not exceeding two hundred dollars for the first violation; (2) A fine not exceeding two hundred and fifty dollars for a second violation of the same ordinance within one year; (3) The third and each additional violation of the same ordinance within one year is a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment; (4) In addition to the monetary fines set forth above, both conditional sentencing and probation are authorized as a sentencing option in accordance with Penal Code Section 1203(a). (c) Each and every day during any portion of which any violation of this code or any other ordinance of the city is committed, continued or permitted shall be a separate offense. (d) Payment of a fine shall not excuse payment of any fee required by this code or any other city ordinance. (e) Nothing contained in this section shall preclude the city from enforcing the provisions of this code or any other ordinance through any other available methods including but not limited to abatement of public nuisances. (f) Nothing contained in this code shall abrogate the city attorney’s discretion to reduce to an infraction any act made unlawful pursuant to this Chapter, if the city attorney determines such a reduction is warranted in the interest of justice. EFFECTIVE DATE: This ordinance shall be effective thirty days after its adoption and the City Clerk shall certify the adoption of this ordinance and cause it to be published at least once in a newspaper of general circulation in the City of Carlsbad within fifteen days after its adoption. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 EXHIBIT 1 INTRODUCED AND FIRST READ at a regular meeting of the Carlsbad City Council on the 12th day of July, 2011, and thereafter. PASSED AND ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Carlsbad on the 26th day of July, 2011, by the following vote, to wit: AYES: Council Members Hall, Blackburn, Douglas and Packard. NOES: None. ABSENT: Council Member Kulchin. APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY RON R. BALL City Attorney 7/*7/*l , Mayor ATTEST: LORRAINE M. WOOD, City Clerk (SEAL)