Sec. 36-36. - Damaging, etc., city property generally.

(a)

No person shall be permitted to use any city property for any purpose which will damage or injure any shrubbery, trees or grass growing on the same and all such persons using the same shall within 24 hours from the time of such use clean up and remove all trash, debris, containers or other things or substances brought on such premises or used by them.

(b)

It shall be unlawful for any person to wilfully, maliciously, wantonly, negligently or in any other manner injure or destroy real property or improvements thereto, or any movable or personal property, belonging to the city.

(Code 1968, § 39-11)

State law reference— Criminal mischief, 11 Del. C. § 811.

Sec. 36-37. - Damage to, contamination of public fountains.

It shall be unlawful for any person to break, injure or do any damage whatever to any public fountain erected in the city, or to wash their hands, persons or substances, or to throw or put any stones, filth or matter whatsoever into the basins of the same, or to injure in any manner fencing enclosing the same.

(Ord. No. 92-053(sub 1), § 26(s)(39-63), 7-2-92)

State law reference— Criminal mischief, 11 Del. C. § 811.

Sec. 36-38. - Selling goods by feigning illness, etc.

Whosoever shall feign illness or lameness in order to sell or attempt to sell any articles, goods, wares or merchandise that he may have for sale, on any of the public streets, squares, lanes, alleys or in any other public place within the city, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor.

(Code 1968, § 39-64)

Cross reference— Consumer protection, ch. 9.

State law reference— Deceptive business practices, 11 Del. C. § 906; criminal impersonation, 11 Del. C. § 907.

Sec. 36-39. - Placing notices, advertisements, etc., on poles, trees, etc., located on streets.

(a)

No person shall post, staple, stick, stamp, paint or otherwise affix, or cause the same to be done by another, any notice, placard, bill, card, poster, advertisement or any other paper or device to or upon any lamppost, electric light, telegraph or telephone pole, hydrant, tree or tree box, or upon any piers or columns located on or along any of the public streets or highways in the city except such as may be authorized or required by law.

(b)

There shall be a prima facie case that the person who is sponsoring the event or activity being advertised or at whose premises or other location selected by it the event or activity is to be conducted or take place, is responsible for the placement of any such notice or other device which is alleged to be in violation of this section. There shall be a rebuttable presumption that such person did himself place or cause to be placed the notice or other device in violation of this section.

(c)

A conviction of a violation of the provisions of this section shall be punishable by a fine of not less than $100.00 nor more than $500.00. A corporation may be fined by the court in an amount not exceeding $1,000.00.

(Code 1968, § 21-1)

Cross reference— Streets, sidewalks and other public places, ch. 42; trees and shrubs, § 46-26 et seq.

State law reference— Placing, etc., advertisements on public highways, 17 Del. C. § 1107 et seq.

Sec. 36-40. - Defacing of property.

(a)

Violation.

(1)

It shall be unlawful for any person to deface real property or improvements thereto by the application of spray paint and/or indelible markers in such a way as to result in the degradation of the property.

(2)

Regardless of cause and the apprehension, or lack thereof, of the person who defaced the property, the condition of the defaced property shall be the responsibility of the owner. The owner of the property shall be responsible for the removal of the spray paint or other markers or any condition defacing the property. It shall be unlawful for the owner to permit the defaced property to remain defaced for a period of 14 days after notice of the defacement by the department of licenses and inspections. The owner may develop with the department of public works an appropriate plan with specificity for the removal of the defacement, and if the owner submits a written preliminary plan and contacts the department within the 14-day period, the violation will be held in abeyance pending completion of such plan and the removal of the defacement pursuant to such plan. Such plan may include such actions as may have been recommended by the department of public works to prevent or to mitigate the effects of future defacing of the same property.

(3)

If the defacing of the property is in the form of graffiti, including but not limited to spray paint or other markers, the quality control team and at least one staff member from the mayor's office of constituent services shall have the authority to issue a citation to the owner of the defaced property. It shall be unlawful for the owner to permit the defaced property to remain defaced for a period of 14 days after notice of the defacement pursuant to this subsection.

(b)

Penalties. The penalty for violation of this section shall be a fine of not less than $100.00, nor more than $1,000.00 for any person or persons convicted of defacing of property and for any owner of property who fails to remove graffiti. The court may, in its discretion, suspend the fine and require that the offender, being the person who defaced the property or improvements thereto, remove the graffiti from the property, restoring it to the condition in which it existed prior to the offense, and/or order restitution to the owner for the restoration of the property at the offender's expense, to the condition in which it existed prior to the offense.

(c)

Removal of defacement. The department of licenses and inspection is authorized to remove the defacement and to repaint and repair the defaced property should the owner fail to do so in a timely manner. The department shall not undertake to provide for the painting or repair of any more area than that where the defacement is located, except when the department determines that a greater area is required to be repainted or repaired in order to avoid an aesthetic disfigurement to the neighborhood.

(d)

Costs as debt. Expenses incurred by the city in relation to the removal of the defacement, with legal interest thereon from the date of expenditure, shall be considered exterior improvement costs. Exterior improvement costs shall be reimbursed to the city by the owner of the property. The city may maintain an action at law in debt or assumpsit against the owner to recover the sums of money expended, plus lawful interest and costs.

(e)

Lien. In accordance with 25 Del. C. § 2901 the costs incurred for the removal of the defacement shall be a lien upon the property.

(Ord. No. 93-064, § 1, 9-16-93; Ord. No. 96-030(sub 1), § 1, 7-10-96; Ord. No. 01-097, § 1, 11-8-01; Ord. No. 02-065, § 1, 9-19-02)

Sec. 36-41. - Sale of spray paint containers and indelible markers.

(a)

Definitions.

(1)

Indelible marker means any felt tip marker, china marker or similar device which is not water soluble and which has a flat or angled writing surface one-half inch or greater.

(2)

Minor means any person under the age of 18.

(3)

Person means any retail establishment.

(b)

Prohibited conduct.

(1)

No person shall knowingly sell or otherwise transfer any spray paint container or indelible marker to a minor, unless the minor is accompanied by a parent or legal guardian at time of purchase or transfer.

(2)

Any person selling, offering for sale, transferring or offering to transfer, any spray paint container or indelible marker must post a written notice indicating that sales of spray paint containers and indelible markers are prohibited to minors. The notice must be clearly visible on the merchandise display device.

A minor who is an employee of a person who or which is a vendor of spray paint containers ("containers") or indelible markers ("markers") may, in the course of his duties, possess such containers or markers for purposes of lawful sale or transfer, but shall not purchase or obtain possession of the same for any other purpose.

(3)

No minor shall, at the time of purchase, as specified in this section, knowingly furnish fraudulent evidence of majority.

(c)

Penalties. A conviction of a violation of the provisions of this section shall be punishable by a fine in an amount not less than $100.00 nor more than $500.00.

(Ord. No. 93-063(sub 1), § 1, 9-16-93)

Sec. 36-42. - Damaging security cameras.

(a)

It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully, maliciously, wantonly, negligently or in any other manner injure or destroy any security cameras belonging to the city or belonging to any other person, governmental or corporate entity.

(b)

For violations of this section, the penalties upon conviction shall be: a fine of not less than $1,000.00 nor more than $1,500.00 for the first offense, a fine of not less than $1,500.00 nor more than $3,500.00 for the second offense, and a fine of not less than $2,000.00 nor more than $5,000.00 for each subsequent offense plus restitution for any expenses incurred to repair or replace the damaged security cameras.

(Ord. No. 07-015(sub 1), § 1, 3-7-07)

Sec. 36-43. - Graffiti and graffiti implements.

In addition to and not in lieu of any other provisions of this City Code, the following provisions shall apply consistent with the provisions of 11 Del. C. § 812, as amended from time to time:

(1)

The offense of graffiti. A person is guilty of the act of graffiti when the person damages public or private real or personal property without permission of the owner by knowingly, purposely or recklessly drawing, painting, or making any significant mark or inscription thereto.

(2)

Possession of graffiti implements. A person is guilty of possession of graffiti implements when he possesses any tool, instrument, article, substance, solution or other compound designed or commonly used to etch, paint, cover, draw upon or otherwise place a mark upon a piece of property which that person has no permission or authority to etch, paint, cover, draw or otherwise mark, under circumstances evidencing an intent to use the same in order to damage such property.

(3)

Penalties. The penalty for a first offense under this section shall be a mandatory fine of not less than $200.00 nor more than $1,000.00, the first $200.00 of which shall not be suspendable, plus restitution for damages to the property and 200 hours of community service, at least half of which shall be served removing graffiti on public property. For second and subsequent offenses, the non-suspendable portion of the fine shall increase to $500.00, and the hours of community service shall increase to 400 hours. Portions of the fine may be used to pay for the cost of supplies for public property graffiti removal and supervision of such graffiti removal.

(Ord. No. 09-019, § 1, 5-7-09)

Secs. 36-44—36-65. - Reserved.