Sec. 134-8. Compulsory insurance; penalty.
(a) No owner of a motor vehicle required to be registered in the state or any low power scooter shall operate the vehicle or permit it to be operated on the public streets of the city when he or she has failed to have a complying policy or certificate of self-insurance in full force and effect as required by law.
(b) No person shall operate a motor vehicle or low power scooter on the public streets of the city without a complying policy or certificate of self-insurance in full force and effect as required by law.
(c) Anywhere within this municipality when an accident occurs or when requested to do so following any lawful traffic contact or during any traffic investigation by a police officer, no owner or operator of a motor vehicle or low power scooter shall fail to immediately present to the requesting officer evidence of a complying policy or certificate of self-insurance in full force and effect as required by law. It shall be an affirmative defense to charges brought under subsection (c) of this section that:
(1) The accident and lawful traffic contact occurred exclusively on private property owned and controlled by the individual; or
(2) All of the following conditions existed:
a. The accident and lawful traffic contact occurred exclusively on private property; and,
b. The vehicle for which the request was made was not licensed to be driven on any street or highway; and,
c. The vehicle was not intended to be driven upon the streets or highways of the City of Aurora at any time.
(d) Penalty.
(1) Any person who enters a plea of guilty, no contest or is convicted at trial of violating any provision of this section shall be punished by a fine of not less than $500.00 or more than $1,000.00 and, in addition, the court may impose imprisonment for not more than one year. The court may suspend up to one-half of the fine upon a showing that appropriate insurance as required by law has been obtained. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prevent the court from imposing a fine greater than the minimum mandatory fine.
(2) Any person who enters a plea of guilty, no contest or is convicted at trial of violating any provision of this section within a period of five years following a prior entry of a plea of guilty, no contest, or conviction at trial of a violation of this section, or C.R.S. § 42-4-1409(1), (2), or (3) shall be punished by a fine of not less than $1,000.00, and in addition, the court may impose imprisonment for not more than one year. The court may suspend up to one-half of the fine upon a showing that appropriate insurance as required by law has been obtained.
(3) In addition to the penalties prescribed in subsections (d)(1) and (2) of this section, any person who enters a plea of guilty, no contest, or is convicted at trial of violating any provision of this section may be sentenced to perform community service.
(e) Testimony of the failure of any owner or operator of a motor vehicle to present immediate evidence of a complying policy or certificate of self-insurance in full force and effect when requested to do so by a peace officer shall constitute prima facie evidence, at a trial concerning a violation charged under subsections (a) or (b) of this section that such owner or operator of a motor vehicle violated subsection (a) or (b) of this section.
(f) No person charged with violating subsection (a) or (b) of this section shall be convicted if that person produces, in court, a bona fide complying policy or certificate of self-insurance which was in full force and effect at the time of the alleged violation, as evidenced by a letter from the insurance company or other insurer, dated after the date of the alleged violation, which states that such insurance was in full force and effect on the date of the alleged violation. The submission of fraudulent insurance documents or the letter/confirmation referred to in this subsection shall constitute a violation of section 94-381 of this Code.
(g) When a defendant is charged with violating subsection (c) of this section the city attorney may, at his or her discretion, request that such charge be dismissed in the event the defendant produces the documents described in subsection (f) of this section. The court may assess against any defendant who is charged with violating subsection (c) of this section, which charge is dismissed upon motion of the city attorney as a result of the defendant's production of the documents described in subsection (f) of this section, reasonable costs not to exceed $30.00.
(h) The clerk of the court shall forward to the executive director of the department of revenue a certified record of any conviction under this section.
(i) It shall be unlawful for any person to present an invalid, altered, or counterfeit letter or insurance identification card from an insurer or agent for the purpose of providing evidence of a complying policy or certificate of self-insurance required by this section. Any person convicted of a violation of this subsection shall be punished by a fine of not less than $500.00. If such conviction is said person's second or subsequent offense, the fine shall be $1,000.00.
(j) It shall be an affirmative defense to a violation of subsection (i) of this section that the person did not know or could not have known that the presented document was invalid, altered, or counterfeit. (Code 1979, §§ 37-160, 37-161; Ord. No. 2011-22, § 5, 8-8-2011; Ord. No. 2007-78, § 2, 11-26-2007; Ord. No. 2004-45, § 2, 8-9-2004; Ord. No. 97-52, § 2, 10-13-1997; Ord. No. 97-35, § 1, 8-4-1997; Ord. No. 95-86, exhibit A (§ 37-160), 10-9-1995)