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Murrieta, CA Noise from Specific Sources: Car Alarm Limits (2026)

Some Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

Alarm cutoff
15 minutes from activation
Nuisance threshold
1 hr continuous or 2 hrs intermittent
False-alarm threshold
4 in any 90-day period
Police authority
Enter property, tow vehicle to silence
Governing sections
Murrieta Code §§ 16.30.130.E.3, 8.04.070

Summary

Murrieta requires a sounding motor vehicle burglar alarm to be terminated within 15 minutes, and police can enter private property, force open alarm boxes, or tow a vehicle to silence a nuisance alarm that has run for an hour straight or two hours on and off.

Sounding or permitting the sounding of an exterior burglar or fire alarm, or motor vehicle burglar alarm is prohibited, unless the alarm is terminated within fifteen (15) minutes of activation. ... An alarm shall be deemed a nuisance alarm and a public nuisance when it has been emitting sound continuously for at least one hour, or intermittently for two hours, and has been reported to the police department as an annoyance by a person in the vicinity of the alarm, and its owner is not available to silence the alarm or to cause it to be silenced. Any officer or police aide of the police department is authorized to enter on exterior private property area, and into vehicles on private property or public streets, for the purpose of silencing a nuisance alarm. ... Actions may be taken to silence vehicle alarms, including the towing of the vehicle, as prescribed in the California Vehicle Code.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-23: A Codification of the General Ordinances of the City of Murrieta, California through Ord. 634-26, passed 7-7-2026).

Full Breakdown

3 prohibits sounding or permitting the sounding of an exterior burglar or fire alarm, or a motor vehicle burglar alarm, unless the alarm is terminated within fifteen (15) minutes of activation. 070, which treats any alarm, including a vehicle alarm, as a public nuisance once it has sounded continuously for at least one hour or intermittently for two hours and a nearby resident has reported it to the police department while the owner is unavailable to silence it. Once an alarm meets that threshold, any police officer or police aide may enter exterior private property, and vehicles on private property or public streets, to silence it, including forcible entry into exterior alarm equipment boxes, and may take action to silence a vehicle alarm including having the vehicle towed under the California Vehicle Code.

The city and its officers are immune from liability for damage caused by a reasonable effort to silence the alarm. 070 also creates a separate false-alarm track: four false alarms at the same location within any ninety-day period is deemed excessive, and the chief of police can place the location on "no response" status, meaning police will not respond to further activations unless a witness at the scene personally reports an actual crime, until the owner shows the underlying problem has been fixed.

Violations & Fines

A vehicle alarm that runs past the 15-minute limit or becomes a nuisance alarm under Section 8.04.070 is a code violation subject to the general penalty in Section 1.08.050: infraction fines of up to $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second within a year, and $500 for a third within a year, escalating to a misdemeanor (up to $1,000 fine and/or six months in jail) on a third violation of the same provision or at the city attorney's discretion for a serious case. Separately, the vehicle itself can be towed at the owner's expense to stop the noise, independent of any citation.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long can a car alarm legally sound in Murrieta?
Under Section 16.30.130.E.3, a motor vehicle burglar alarm must be terminated within fifteen minutes of activation; letting it sound longer is a code violation on its own.
Can Murrieta police tow a car to stop its alarm?
Yes. Section 8.04.070 lets police enter private property and vehicles to silence a nuisance alarm, including towing the vehicle under the California Vehicle Code, once the alarm has run continuously for an hour or intermittently for two hours and been reported.
What if my car alarm keeps going off by accident?
Four false alarms at the same location within ninety days is deemed excessive under Section 8.04.070, and the chief of police can put the location on no-response status until the owner proves the problem is fixed.

Sources & Official References

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