Appeal by the People from an order of the Justice Court, Town of Riverhead, Suffolk County (A. Smith, J.), entered June 9, 2003, holding that Town of Southhold Code § 92-52 was unconstitutional as applied to defendant herein and directing the Town of Southold to return defendant's vehicle, impounded by the Town, to her.

Order unanimously reversed without costs and direction to the Town of Southold to return defendant's impounded car to her vacated.

This criminal proceeding, transferred to the Town of Riverhead upon the recusal of all of Southold's Town Justices, was brought against defendant for violations of Town Code § 92-49D (barring parking on a public highway of a car which does not have a current inspection sticker or registration) and Vehicle and Traffic Law § 306 (same).
The issue of the constitutionality of Town of Southhold Code § 92-52, pursuant to which the vehicle was impounded, was not before the court below. The sole issue properly before the court was defendant's guilt or innocence of the traffic offenses with which she was charged and thus it lacked jurisdiction to direct the return of the vehicle. "It is a fundamental principle of our jurisprudence that the power of a court to declare the law only arises out of, and is limited to, determining the rights of persons which are actually controverted in a particular case pending before the tribunal" (Matter of Hearst Corp. v Clyne, 50 NY2d 707, 713 [1980]).

We do not pass upon the issue of whether the seizure of defendant's car was proper in the circumstances herein.
Decision Date: October 20, 2004