LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Officials here have filed 37 lawsuits against businesses and organizations that have failed to pay thousands of dollars in false alarm fines.
The city enacted a false alarm ordinance in June 2005 after research showed that police responded to more than 40,000 false alarms a year, The Courier Journal reports. Although the Louisville Police Department has responded to less than 20,000 this year, it still costs an average of $90 per officer to respond to false alarms.
Since 2007, the city has collected more than $4 million in false alarm fines. Currently, businesses and residents owe the city roughly $400,000 in fees. The No. 1 offender is a Taco Bell that has had more than 40 false alarms since 2008 and owes $10,700 to the city.
Bill Cooper, president of the Kentucky Electronic Security Association (KYESA), has offered his support to the LPD, noting that a small percentage of businesses are responsible for the majority of the problem.
“Police response is not a right, it’s a privilege,” he told The Courier Journal. “They have a right to collect their money.”
