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Register false alarms before July 1
| Article published on Tuesday, June 9, 2009 |
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Starting July 1, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office will begin enforcing the false alarm ordinance approved by the Pinellas Board of County Commissioners earlier this year.
The ordinance covers the unincorporated area of Pinellas County and the 12 cities currently under contract with the Sheriff’s Office for law enforcement services. They are Belleaur Bluffs, Belleair Shore, Belleair Beach, Dunedin, Indian Rocks Beach, Madeira Beach, North Redington Beach, Oldsmar, Redington Beach, Safety Harbor, Seminole and South Pasadena.
Under the ordinance, home and business owners shall register their alarm systems with the Sheriff’s Office. The new SHARP or Sheriff’s Alarm Registration Program was created to manage this initiative.
There is no fee to register a home or business alarm system.
Alarm subscribers can register online on the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Web site, www.pcsoweb.com, click on the SHARP icon. Registration forms have also been distributed to the Sheriff’s Administration Building on Ulmerton Road, the Sheriff’s North District Station in Dunedin, the city halls of the 12 listed contract cities, and the Pinellas County Courthouse in downtown Clearwater.
Alarm subscribers registered with SHARP receive two free passes if they experience two false alarms during the year. After the two free passes, they are subject to a fine schedule ranging from $75 per false alarm up to $500 per false alarm.
Subscribers who do not register with SHARP do not receive any free passes for false alarms and are subject to a much steeper fine schedule, ranging from $175 per alarm up to $600 per alarm.
Home and business owners who experience false alarms between now and the July 1 enforcement date will receive registration notices from responding deputy sheriffs.
According to Sheriff Jim Coats, the purpose of the false alarm ordinance is to reduce the number of false alarms in the Sheriff’s jurisdiction.
The Sheriff’s Crime Prevention Unit will manage SHARP. For more information, call Sgt. Larry Nalven at 582-2870 or e-mail sharp@pcsonet.com.
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Article published on Tuesday, June 9, 2009
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