§ 27-21-20 — Property recovered by sheriff or police chief; ascertaining and notifying owner; disposition where owner not found; records.

(A) If property has been recovered by a sheriff of a county or chief of police of a municipality and ownership is ascertained, the sheriff or chief of police must notify its owner as provided by subsection (B). (B) A sheriff or chief of police must provide notice: (1) within fifteen days; (2) by registered mail, return receipt requested; (3) describing the property and including an identifying serial number if available; and (4) advising the owner that the property may be sold at auction pursuant to Section 27-21-22 if not reclaimed within sixty days of mailing of the notice. (C) If after diligent efforts the owner of the property cannot be ascertained or if the property is not reclaimed or sold at public auction, the sheriff of a county or chief of police of a municipality may dispose of any recovered stolen or abandoned property as provided in this subsection. (1) Property that is not suitable for sale, including, but not limited to, clothing, food, prescription drugs, weapons, household cleaning products, chemicals, or items that appear nonusable, including, but not limited to: (a) electric components that appear to have been skeletonized, where parts have been removed and are no longer in working order; or (b) items that have been broken up and only pieces exist may be destroyed by the jurisdiction holding the property. (2) The sheriff or chief of police may use any property recovered by his jurisdiction if the property is placed on the jurisdiction's inventory as property of the jurisdiction. (3) The sheriff or chief of police, with the consent of the appropriate governing body, may turn over to any organization exempt from tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, items of abandoned or recovered property that may be used for the betterment of that organization. However, the accrued value of the items given to an individual organization as provided above by a sheriff or chief of police shall not exceed a value of one thousand dollars in the respective government entity's fiscal year. (D) A jurisdiction recovering property pursuant to the provisions of this section shall maintain a permanent record of all property recovered and its disposition.

Legislative History

HISTORY: 1962 Code SECTION 57-245; 1959 (51) 390; 1982 Act No. 291, SECTION 1; 1992 Act No. 405, SECTION 1; 1993 Act No. 148, SECTION 1; 2002 Act No. 195, SECTION 4; 2008 Act No. 279, SECTION 15, eff October 1, 2008. Effect of Amendment The 2008 amendment, in subsection (A), substituted "by subsection (B)" for "in Section 56-5-5630"; and rewrote subsection (B).