Utah Code 77-11a-203. Procedure after seizure of property or contraband

77-11a-203. Procedure after seizure of property or contraband.

(1)

If a peace officer seizes property or contraband under Section 77-11a-201, the property and contraband:

Terms Used In Utah Code 77-11a-203

Acquittal:
1. Judgement that a criminal defendant has not been proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
2. A verdict of "not guilty."
Agency: includes a law enforcement agency or a multijurisdictional task force. See Utah Code 77-11a-101
Contraband: includes :

(i)	a controlled substance that is possessed, transferred, distributed, or offered for distribution in violation of Title 58, Chapter 37, Utah Controlled Substances Act; or

(ii)

a computer that:

(A)	contains or houses child sexual abuse material, or is used to create, download, transfer, upload to a storage account, or store any electronic or digital files containing child sexual abuse material; or

(B)

contains the personal identifying information of another individual, as defined in Section 76-6-1101, whether that individual is alive or deceased, and the personal identifying information has been used to create false or fraudulent identification documents or financial transaction cards in violation of 5. See Utah Code 77-11a-101

Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.

Pawn or secondhand business: means the same as that term is defined in Section 13-32a-102. See Utah Code 77-11a-101

Peace officer: means an employee:

(a)	of an agency;

(b)	whose duties consist primarily of the prevention and detection of violations of laws of this state or a political subdivision of this state; and

(c)	who is authorized by the agency to seize property. See Utah Code 77-11a-101 Person: means :Utah Code 68-3-12.5 Property: means all property, whether real or personal, tangible or intangible. See Utah Code 77-11a-101 Seized property: includes property that the agency seeks to forfeit under Chapter 11b, Forfeiture of Seized Property. See Utah Code 77-11a-101
(a)	is not recoverable by replevin; and

(b)	is considered in the custody of the agency that employed the peace officer.

(2)	If a peace officer seizes property under Section 77-11a-201, the peace officer or the peace officer’s employing agency shall provide a receipt to the person from which the property is seized.

(3)

The receipt shall describe the:

(a)	property seized;

(b)	date of seizure; and

(c)	name and contact information of the peace officer’s employing agency.

(4)

In addition to the receipt, the peace officer or agency shall provide the person with:

(a)

information on:

(i)	the time periods for the forfeiture of property; and

(ii)	what happens to property upon a conviction or acquittal of the offense subjecting the property to seizure; and

(b)	a web link or referral to the self-help webpage of the Utah Courts’ website for resources that may assist the person in making a claim for the return of seized property.

(5)	The agency shall maintain a copy of the receipt provided in accordance with Subsection (2).

(6)	If a peace officer seizes property that, at the time of seizure, is held by a pawn or secondhand business in the course of the pawn or secondhand business’s business, the provisions of Section 13-32a-109.5 shall apply to the seizure of the property.

(7)	If custody of the property is transferred to another agency, the transferring agency shall provide the other agency a copy of the receipt under Subsection (2) and the name of the person from which the property was seized.

Renumbered and Amended by Chapter 448, 2023 General Session

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