City alarmed over increase in home burglaries

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September 05, 2013By Sylvie Belmond
belmond@theacorn.com

During a pair of meetings last month the Calabasas City Council considered an ordinance aimed at regulating door-to-door solicitation in the city.

Among other things, the Public Safety Commission recommended that solicitors should register with the city. It also suggesting limiting hours for canvassers from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Individuals seeking money or goods, and commercial and nonprofit groups would be prohibited from going to homes that have a no-solicitation sign posted.

Due to a number of concerns, officials dropped the bid for a registration program and related regulations. They only approved the section of the ordinance that bars door-to-door solicitations at homes and businesses that have no-soliciting signs.

The intent was to protect the peace and tranquility of residents and deter fraud and other criminal behavior while respecting people’s rights to free speech, a report said.

“This came up because we’ve had an uptick in burglaries, and some of the people who have been committing these crimes used solicitation to case the houses,” Mayor Fred Gaines said.

“Right now if some suspicious people go through neighborhoods, the police don’t necessarily have the ability to stop them. It’s an additional basis for probable cause.”

He said the best part of the ordinance is that it gives deputies the ability to question, cite or arrest people if they violate the rules.

“It’s not to stop the Girl Scouts or local kids selling wrapping paper or candy for a local school,” Gaines said.

Under the proposed rules, all charitable groups, individuals, firms and businesses involved in door-to-door solicitations for goods, services or money would have been required to register with the city.

This included Girl Scouts, solar installers and individuals who drop fliers on doorsteps without ringing a doorbell.

Applicants would be asked to provide a photo ID along with details on who they are, what they do and how they would use the funds collected.

But religious and political groups were exempt.

“Some court cases suggest it could affect their First Amendment rights. Religious and political organizations have a higher level of protection,” City Attorney Scott Howard said. Requiring a license from these groups could make the city vulnerable to litigation.

Originally commissioners wanted to exempt nonprofit groups, but the city attorney told them they could not delineate commercial versus nonprofit because that could favor one type of free speech over another.

“You can’t have a regulation in total apply to commercial and not apply at all to nonprofits. It’s sort of an all or nothing approach. If you’re going to regulate this form of speech, then you need to regulate everyone,” Howard said.

Norm Buehring, president of Saratoga Hills Community Association, supported the regulations.

“As a consumer I would be more willing to engage someone at my door that at least has gone through some identification at the city,” he said.

Other speakers wanted exemptions for local school and sport fundraisers, and other local philanthropic groups such as Scouts.

Calabasas resident Michael Piszker said with the definition in the ordinance, trick-or-treaters would need a permit.

“If we’re not careful tonight, we could see a headline in the local newspaper saying Calabasas bans Halloween” Piszker said at the Aug. 14 meeting.

As proposed, the ordinance would discourage vital fundraising activities for scouting programs and schools, said resident Anne Strauss, a Girl Scout leader of 15 years.

“It’s really hard to think about a little girl, 5 years old, carrying a card saying the city says it’s okay to knock on doors,” she said.

Councilmember James Bozajian said he had serious reservations about the ordinance.

“It’s too broad. We’re getting into a very regulatory mode in this city. I understand why . . . but we may be overdoing it,” the council member said.

Councilmembers Mary Sue Maurer and Lucy Martin also had qualms with the stringent regulations.

“This is well-meaning, but it’s not actually coming out on paper that way. It seems that we are punishing more of the innocent than actually deterring the crime,” Martin said.

After a long debate Aug 14, the council voted 5-0 to approve a diluted version of ordinance that only prohibits solicitations at homes and businesses that post “no solicitation” signs. That rule also affects religious and political groups.

If they disturb someone at a home that has a no-solicitation sign, solicitors could be charged with a misdemeanor.

Officials revisited the issue on Aug. 28. At that time, they agreed to amended the proposed penalty for violation to misdemeanor or infraction. The penalty would be at the discretion of the prosecutor.

The council is scheduled to finalize the ordinance at a meeting on Sept. 11.

Gaines said many other cities regulate door-to-door activities. For instance, all solicitors in Los Angeles must first obtain permission from the city before they can work in neighborhoods.http://www.cityofcalabasas.com/pdf/O2013-305-Solicitation.pdf
https://www.cityofcalabasas.com/pdf/agendas/council/2013/081413/item10-attachment.pdf
http://www.cityofcalabasas.com/pdf/agendas/council/2018/022818/item7-attachment-a.pdf