PROPERTY & EVIDENCE
Found Property
In accordance with RCW 63.21, any person who finds property that is not unlawful to possess, the owner of which is unknown, and who wishes to claim the found property, shall:
Within seven (7) days of finding the property, you must:
Acquire a signed statement setting forth an appraisal of the current market value of the property prepared by a qualified person engaged in buying or selling like items or by a district court judge, unless the found property is cash.
Report the find of property and surrender, if requested, the property and a copy of the evidence of the value of the property to the Sheriff' Office and serve written notice upon the Sheriff's Office of your intent to claim the property if the owner does not make out his or her right to it.
Within thirty (30) days of reporting of the property:
The Sheriff's Office shall cause notice of the finding to be published at least once a week for two successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the property was found, unless the appraised value of the property is less than the cost of publishing notice. If the value is less than the cost of publishing notice, the governmental entity may cause notice to be posted or published in other media or formats that do not incur expense to the governmental entity.
You may only obtain possession of found property when:
The found property is not illegal for you to possess.
The found property shall be released to the finder and become the property of the finder sixty days after the find was reported to the Sheriff's Office if no owner has been found, or sixty days after the final disposition of any judicial or other official proceeding involving the property, whichever is later. The property shall be released only after the finder has presented evidence of payment to the treasurer of Pacific County, the amount of ten dollars plus the amount of the cost of publication of notice incurred by the Sheriff's Office pursuant to RCW 63.21.010, which amount shall be deposited in the general fund of Pacific County. If the appraised value of the property is less than the cost of publication of notice of the finding, then the finder is not required to pay any fee.
When ninety days have passed after the found property was reported to the Sheriff's Office, or ninety days after the final disposition of a judicial or other proceeding involving the found property, and the finder has not completed the requirements of this chapter, the finder's claim shall be deemed to have expired and the found property may be disposed of as unclaimed property under chapter 63.32 or 63.40 of the RCW. Such laws shall also apply whenever a finder states in writing that he or she has no intention of claiming the found property.
Any finder of property who fails to discharge the duties above shall forfeit all right to the property and shall be liable for the full value of the property to its owner.
Prescription Drop Box
Unwanted and unused prescription medications are a problem; they can pose health risks as a result of accidental poisonings or intentional misuse, as well as environmental risks if they make their way into the environment.
There is a prescription drop box located outside the Public Safety Building in South Bend and one inside the lobby of the Sheriff's Office in Long Beach as well.
