MURRIETA -- Burglar alarms are supposed to provide a sense of security, but at what cost?

The Murrieta City Council will hold a public hearing Tuesday to initiate tax liens on 10 properties throughout the city that have not paid their fines when their alarms were falsely set off.

The council meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday, at City Hall, 24601 Jefferson Ave.

When the original report was drafted by city finance officials, 12 properties were listed as delinquent. Since then, two have settled their debts, said Suzanne Wellcome, director of finance for the city.

This year's delinquent alarm charges citywide total $2,838, but the city stands to receive up to $4,247 in reimbursements from the property owners, which would include the cost of fees charged to the city by the county to place the lien. A lien ensures that the party to whom the debt is owed will be paid when the property is sold.

The city calls the cost of sending police officers to repeated false alarms a "civil debt." All alarms within city limits are required to have a shut-off timer that stops the alarm after 15 minutes of it being set off. Per city law, property owners or maintenance crews are supposed to shut off an alarm manually if it has been active for at least 30 minutes.

The law governing false burglar alarms allows property owners to get away with three false ones within a year. On the fourth false alarm, the property owner is charged $100. A fifth false alarm costs $150, while all subsequent false alarms cost $200 each.

Property owners are billed within 60 days of the alarms subject to fines, and those who haven't paid now face the liens.

Of the 10 property owners, three have racked up at least $400 in charges.

The owner of a home on Calle De Tres Amigos off Los Alamos Road, for example, owes $400 in fines, according to city records. A resident of the home said Friday that the owner was not available for comment.

A home on Engelmann Oak Street owes $672 in fines, according to the city. The house shows indications of abandonment -- an overgrown lawn, a dying tree. But a sign at the front door indicates the property owner still claims possession.

"No trespassing," the sign reads. "Violators will be shot. Survivors will be shot again."

A mat at the front door states, "(We are) watching you!"

The most delinquent property, however, isn't a residence but a restaurant, city records show.

Tacos Tijuana Mexican Grill, located in the Margarita Square shopping center on Murrieta Hot Springs Road, owes $850 for several instances in which police officers responded to false burglar alarms, city records state.

Sara Soliz, the restaurant's manager, said it seemed excessive to charge a business for what she contends is the police department's responsibility.

Passersby, she said, sometimes yank on the front door of the business after it has closed for the evening, which sets off the alarm. Also, motion at the rear of the business can set off another alarm, she said.

Saying she has no involvement in how the property owner pays city fees and fines, she wondered why responses to burglar alarms aren't covered by tax revenue financing police patrols.

"We try to be careful," with the sensitivity of the alarms, she said. "But if (the police) take from our taxes, it's the police's responsibility."

Wellcome, who administers Murrieta's false alarm fines, said Monday that property owners are given several warnings when their burglar alarms go off without provocation. And those who either fail to rectify their systems or do not pay for the responses are putting a burden on the city 's public safety resources.

"Certainly, if there's a real response, then (the police) are doing what they're supposed to be doing," Wellcome said. "But (a false alarm) drags them away from things where they are more needed."

Call staff writer Nelsy Rodriguez at 951-676-4315, ext. 2626.