6-6-8. Impoundment.

(1) Notice. As soon as it is reasonable under the circumstances, a written notice that a vehicle has been impounded shall be mailed to the owner and recorded lien holder, if there is one, of the vehicle at their last known addresses as shown by the records of Motor Vehicle Division of the Utah State Tax Commission. If the license plates on the vehicle are from another state, written notice shall be mailed to the Department of Motor Vehicles in such state, requesting such department to notify the registered owner of such vehicle that the same has been impounded by the County Sheriff and that the same will be sold at a public auction as is provided by the ordinances of the County if not claimed by the owner or his proper representative, as provided by the County ordinances.
(2) Release of Impounded Vehicle. Before the owner or his agents shall be permitted to remove the vehicle which has been impounded, he shall:
(a) furnish satisfactory evidence to the County Sheriff of his identity and his ownership of the vehicle;
(b) request and obtain from the Sheriff a written order directed to the place of storage in which the vehicle is impounded, authorizing the release of the vehicle to the owner or his agent upon the payment to the place of storage of towing and storage charges reasonably incurred in the towing and storage of the vehicle from the date of the impounding to the time of presenting the order of release to the County Sheriff therefor;
(c) sign a written receipt for the vehicle and deliver the same to the place of storage upon receiving the impounded vehicle.
(3) Unclaimed Vehicles-Auction-Disposition of Proceeds. If at the expiration of 30 days after mailing the notice provided for in Subsection (1), such vehicle is not redeemed by the owner or his proper representative, the County Sheriff or his authorized agent shall proceed to sell the same at public auction to the highest bidder after first giving at least 10 days' notice of the sale by publishing the notice at least once in a newspaper of general circulation published in the County, stating the time and place of the sale. Such notice shall also describe the vehicle to be sold with reasonable certainty and shall state to whom, if anyone, the records of the office of the Motor Vehicle Division of the Utah State Tax Commission show the same to belong, and if the name of the owner is unknown, that fact shall be stated. If the name of the owner or recorded lien holder, if any, is known, the County Sheriff shall send such owner or recorded lien holder a copy of such notice as published immediately after the publication of the same, which notice shall be mailed to their last known address or their address as shown on the records of the Motor Vehicle Division of the Utah State Tax Commission. A copy of this notice as published shall immediately, after publication, be mailed to the owner of the place of storage. The money received by the County Sheriff, or his authorized agent, from the sale of any such vehicle shall be applied first to the actual cost of towing and storage of such impounded vehicle, then to pay the cost of advertising the notice of sale for each vehicle so impounded and the balance, if any, shall then be placed into the County general fund to be used as hereinafter provided.
(4) Claim by Owner Subsequent to Auction. If at any time within 1 year from and after a sale as provided in Subsection (3), the former owner of the vehicle sold, upon application to the County Commission and upon presentation of a satisfactory proof that he was the owner of the vehicle sold, shall be paid the proceeds of such sale less the necessary expenses of the sale and less the towing, impounding and storage charges provided for in Subsection (3).
(5) Records to be Kept. The County Sheriff shall keep a record of all vehicles impounded by manufacturer's trade name or make, body type, motor and license number, the names and addresses of all persons claiming the same, and the nature and circumstances of the impounding thereof, and the violation on account of which such vehicles were impounded, the date of such impounding and the name and address of any person to whom any such vehicle is released. (Ord. 95-19, 9/12/95; Ord. 92-5, 9/1/92)