ORDINANCE FOR THE REGULATION OF TRAFFIC BY THE COUNTY OF
LARIMER, COLORADO; ADOPTING BY REFERENCE THE 2010 EDITION OF THE
“MODEL TRAFFIC CODE;” REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT; AND
PROVIDING PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION THEREOF.
ORDINANCE NO. 02172015O001
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF
LARIMER COUNTY, COLORADO:
Section 1. Repeal: Larimer County Ordinance No. 02032004O001 and No. 11032009O001 are
hereby repealed.
Section 2. Adoption: Pursuant to parts 1 and 2 of Article 16 of Title 31 and part 4 of Article 15 of
Title 30, C.R.S., there is hereby adopted by reference Articles I and II, inclusive, of the 2010 edition
of the "Model Traffic Code” promulgated and published as such by the Colorado Department of
Transportation, Safety and Traffic Engineering Branch, 4201 East Arkansas Avenue, EP 700.,
Denver, CO 80222. The subject matter of the Model Traffic Code relates primarily to comprehensive
traffic control regulations for the County. The purpose of this Ordinance and the Code adopted herein
is to provide a system of traffic regulations consistent with state law and generally conforming to
similar regulations throughout the state and the nation. Three (3) copies of the Model Traffic Code
adopted herein are now filed in the office of the
Clerk and Recorder of Larimer County, Colorado,
and may be inspected during regular business hours. A copy may also be available at
http://www.coloradodot.info/library/traffic/traffic-manuals-guidelines/fed-state-co-traffic-
manuals/model-traffic-code/view
Section 3. Penalties: The following penalty process, herewith set forth in full, shall apply to this
Ordinance and shall supersede any conflicting provision in Section 1709:
(a) If a penalty assessment ticket for a Larimer County traffic infraction is issued, the penalty
will be as specified on the ticket provided the offender mails in the ticket and pays the
fine. The penalty assessment procedure contained in § 16-2-201, C.R.S., shall be
followed, as defined below:
(1) When a person is arrested for a class 2 petty offense, the arresting officer may
either give the person a penalty assessment notice and release him upon its terms
or take him before a judge of the county court in the county in which the alleged
offense occurred. The choice of procedures shall be based upon circumstances
which reasonably persuade the officer that the alleged offender is likely or
unlikely to comply with the terms of the penalty assessment notice. Such
circumstances may include the officer accompanying the offender to a post office
or mailbox and witnessing the deposit in the mail of the notice with payment of
the fine attached.
(2) The provisions
of
subsection 5(a)(l)
of
this Ordinance notwithstanding, when an
officer comes upon an unattended vehicle which is parked in apparent violation
of
any county parking ordinance, the officer may place upon the vehicle a
penalty assessment notice as specified in subsection (3)
of
this section; except
that said notice shall contain the license plate number and state
of
registration
of
the vehicle and need not contain the identification
of
the alleged offender.
When a penalty assessment notice is left on an unattended vehicle, it shall be
presumed that the registered owner
of
such vehicle was the driver/offender.
(3) The penalty assessment notice shall be a summons and complaint containing
identification
of
the alleged offender, specification
of
the offense and applicable
fine, a requirement that the alleged offender pay the fine
or
appear to answer the
charge at a specified time and place, and any other matter reasonably adapted
effectuating the purposes
of
this section. A duplicate copy shall be sent to the
clerk
of
the county court in the county in which the alleged offense occurred.
(4)
If
the person given a penalty assessment notice chooses to acknowledge his
guilt, he may pay the specified fine in person
or
by mail at the place and within
the time specified in the notice.
If
he chooses not to acknowledge his guilt,
he
shall appear as required in the notice. Upon trial,
if
the alleged offender is
found guilty, the fine imposed shall be that specified in the notice for the offense
of
which he was found guilty, but customary court costs may be assessed against
him in addition to the fine.
(b)
For
all offenses where the offender pleads not guilty, does not pay the fine
or
receives a
summons for an offense not
on
the Fine Schedule, the penalty will be as provided in
C.R.S.
§ 30-15-402.
Section 4. Procedure:
(a) All offenses for which a penalty assessment ticket is issued are called "Larimer County
Traffic Infractions." All references in the Model Traffic Code to municipal court shall
mean Larimer County Court. All references to a municipal judge shall mean a Larimer
County Court judge
or
Larimer County Court magistrate.
(b) Section 1708
of
the Model Traffic Code is deleted and the following is substituted:
(1) Every hearing in county court for the adjudication
of
a traffic infraction, as
provided by this Ordinance, shall be held before a county court magistrate
appointed pursuant to part 5
of
article 6
of
title 13,
C.R.S.,
or
before a county
2
judge acting
as
a magistrate; except that, whenever a crime and a class A
or
class B traffic infraction or a crime and both such class A and class B traffic
infractions are charged in the same summons and complaint, all charges shall be
made returnable before a judge
or
magistrate having jurisdiction over the crime
and the rules
of
criminal procedure shall apply. Nothing in this Ordinance
or
in
part 5
of
article 6
of
title 13, C.R.S., shall be construed
to
prevent a court
having jurisdiction over a criminal charge relating to traffic law violations from
lawfully entering a judgment on a case dealing with a class A
or
class B traffic
infraction.
(2) When a court
of
competent jurisdiction determines that a person charged with a
class 1
or
class 2 misdemeanor traffic offense
is
guilty
of
a lesser-included
offense which is a class A
or
class B traffic infraction, the court may enter a
judgment as
to
such lesser charge.
(3) The burden
of
proof shall be upon the People, and the traffic magistrate shall
enter judgment in favor
of
the defendant unless the People prove the liability
of
the defendant beyond a reasonable doubt. The district attorney
or
the district
attorney's deputy may, in the district attorney's discretion, enter traffic
infraction cases for the purpose
of
attempting a negotiated plea
or
a stipulation
to deferred prosecution or deferred judgment and sentence but shall not be
required to so enter by any person, court,
or
law, nor shall the district attorney
represent the state at hearings conducted by a magistrate
or
a county judge
acting as a magistrate on class A or class B traffic infraction matters. The
magistrate
or
county judge acting as a magistrate shall be permitted to call and
question any witness and shall also act as the fact finder at hearings on traffic
infraction matters.
( 4) Appeal from final judgment on a traffic infraction matter shall be taken to the
district court for the county in which the magistrate
or
judge acting as magistrate
is
located.
(5) Time Limitations:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b)
of
this subsection (5), no
person against whom a judgment has been entered for a traffic infraction
herein shall collaterally attack the validity
of
that judgment unless such
attack
is
commenced within six months after the date
of
entry
of
the
judgment.
(b) In recognition
of
the difficulties attending the litigation
of
stale claims
and the potential for frustrating various statutory provisions directed at
3
repeat offenders, former offenders, and habitual offenders, the only
exceptions to the time limitations specified in paragraph (a)
of
this
subsection (5) shall be:
(i) A case in which the court entering judgment did not have
jurisdiction over the subject matter
of
the alleged infraction;
(ii) A case in which the court entering judgment did not have
jurisdiction over the person
of
the violator;
(iii) Where the court hearing the collateral attack finds by a
preponderance
of
the evidence that the failure to seek relief
within the applicable time period was caused
by
an
adjudication
of
incompetence
or
by commitment
of
the violator to
an
institution for treatment as a mentally
ill
person;
or
(iv) Where the court hearing the collateral attack finds that the failure
to seek relief within the applicable time period was the result
of
circumstances amounting to justifiable excuse
or
excusable
neglect.
( c) Trials shall not
be
before a
jury.
( d) All prosecutions for all other offenses under this Ordinance shall
be
by the District
Attorney according to the Colorado County Court Rules
of
Criminal Procedure.
Section
5.
Application:
This Ordinance shall apply to every street, alley, sidewalk area,
driveway, park, and to every other public way
or
public place
or
public parking area, within
the limits
of
Larimer County. The provisions
of
Sections 1401, 1402,1413 and Part 16
of
the
adopted Model Traffic Code, respectively, governing reckless driving, careless driving, and
eluding a police officer shall apply not only to public places and ways
but
also throughout
Larimer County.
Section
6.
Va/,idity:
If
any part
or
parts
of
this Ordinance are for any reason held to
be
invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity
of
the remaining portions
of
this Ordinance.
The Board
of
County Commissioners hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance
and each part
or
parts thereof, irrespective
of
the fact that any one part
or
parts
be
declared
invalid.
Section
7.
Interpretation:
This Ordinance shall be so interpreted and construed as to
effectuate its general purpose to conform with the State's uniform system for the regulation
of
vehicles and traffic. Article and section headings
of
the Ordinance and adopted Model Traffic
4
Code shall not be deemed to govern, limit, modify
or
in any manner affect the scope, meaning
or
extent
of
the provisions
of
any article
or
section thereof.
Section
8.
Certification:
The Larimer County Clerk and Recorder shall certify to the passage
of
this Ordinance and make not less than three copies
of
the adopted Code available for
inspection by the public during regular business hours. The adopted Ordinance shall include
this Ordinance and the 2010 Model Traffic Code. Offenses which lack a corresponding Fine
shall have a Fine
as
established in the Colorado Revised Statutes. All surcharges are as
provided by the Colorado Revised Statutes as amended.
ADOPTED this
j
1-(1--
day
of
Fcb
vvt
a
Y1j
, 2015.
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS OF LARIMER
CUNT
,COLORADO
By:
ATTESTATION:
I,
12w
1a.
s
t=o
l~.
\)~
, Larimer County Clerk, attest that the foregoing
ORDINANCE FOR
THEULA
IO
OF
TRAFFIC was read at a meeting
of
the Board
of
County Commissioners and has been published in a newspaper
of
general circulation for
Larimer County at least ten ( 10) days prior to the date
of
its adoption, in compliance with
Section 30-15-406 C.R.S. 1973 as amended.
Clerk and R~
pv:hj
5
DATE
J
/,
)//5
APPROVED
As
TO
FOR
~
NOTICE
OF
HEARING
NOTICE is hereby given
of
a public hearing before the Larimer County Board
of
County Commissioners at
C/
:oo
a.m.
on
the 17
th
day
of
February, 2015, at the
Commissioners' Hearing Room for the purpose
of
considering the adoption
of
the following
Ordinance adopting by reference the "Model Traffic Code," Revised 2010 edition, as the
traffic ordinance
of
Larimer County, Colorado.
Copies
of
this Ordinance, Model Traffic Code are
on
file at the office
of
the Larimer
County Commissioners and may
be
inspected during regular business hours.
If
enacted as
an
ordinance
of
this County, the Model Traffic Code will not
be
published in full, but in
accordance with state law, copies will
be
kept
on
file.
The
Revised 2010 "Model Traffic Code," is published
by
the Colorado Department
of
Transportation, Staff Traffic and Safety Projects Branch, 4201 East Arkansas Avenue, Denver,
Colorado 80222. The subject matter
of
the Model Traffic Code relates primarily to
comprehensive traffic control regulations for Larimer County.
The
purpose
of
the Ordinance
and the Code adopted therein is to provide a system
of
traffic regulations consistent with state
law and generally conforming to similar regulations throughout the state and the nation.
A copy
of
the Revised 2010 "Model Traffic Code" is also available at
http://www.coloradodot.info/library/traffic/traffic-manuals-guidelines/fed-state-co-traffic-
manuals/model-traffic-code/ at download/file
This notice given and published
by
the order
of
the Larimer County Board
of
County
Commissioners.
Dated this day
of
_________
, 2015.
LARIMER
COUNTY,
COLORADO
BY
ORDER
OF
THE
LARIMER
COUNTY
BOARD
OF
COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS
Clerk
and Recorder - Deputy
CERTIFICATION
STATE OF COLORADO )
)
s.
COUNTY OF LARIMER)
We, the undersigned, do hereby certify that this Model Traffic Code
is
a true and
accurate copy
of
the code adopted by reference introduced under proposed Ordinance No.
041520140001 on
___________
, 2015, such Ordinance adopting by
reference was published in the Fort Collins Coloradoan Newspaper, a newspaper
of
general
circulation, on
__
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_ , 2015, and adopted by the Board
of
County Commissioners for Larimer County, Colorado, on _
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, 2015
pursuant to and
as
provided by Part 1
of
Article 4
of
Title 42, and Part 4
of
Article
15
of
Title
30, C.R.S., as amended.
DATED this
ll--11"
day
of
R.,bv\;lCtY2j
, 2015.
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
OF THE COUNTY OF LARIMER
ATTEST:
By:
~
,_
,
_C_h_a-ir
_______
__
_
NOTICE OF ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE FOR THE REGULATION OF TRAFFIC
Larimer County, Colorado Ordinance 041520140001 for the Regulation
of
Traffic, was
adopted by the Board
of
County Commissioners
of
Larimer County, Colorado at a Public
Hearing on
&bt-µ.at-a
11
, 2015. Such ordinance adopted by reference the
"Model Traffic code for Co orado" Revised 2010 edition.
The Ordinance was originally published on _
_,r",_,-'-'eb..__
_______
• This Ordinance
will take effect 30 days from the date
of
this publication.
