Unless otherwise expressly stated, the following words shall, for the
purpose of this chapter, have the following meanings:
ABANDONED MOTOR VEHICLE
A motor vehicle, or parts thereof, which has been voluntarily relinquished
by its owner, with the intention of terminating his ownership, possession
and control, without vesting ownership in any other person.
JUNKED MOTOR VEHICLE
Any motor vehicle, or parts thereof, not in running condition, left
or stored in the open, and not in such an enclosure as is reasonably calculated
to prevent children from playing on or about such motor vehicle.
MOTOR VEHICLE
Any vehicle which is self-propelled and also any trailer or semitrailer
designed for use with such vehicles, whether or not the same is required to
be registered under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership, firm, association
or corporation to park or store on any street or in the open on public or
private property within the Township of Lawrence any abandoned motor vehicle
or junked motor vehicle for a period longer than 15 days. The following acts
or circumstances shall be prima facie evidence that a motor vehicle is an
abandoned motor vehicle:
A. Failure to move any motor vehicle disabled by reason
of an accident for a period of 15 days from the date of said accident;
B. The leaving of a motor vehicle that is inoperable on
public property, unattended for a period of more than 15 days;
C. A motor vehicle that has remained illegally on public
property for a period of more than 15 days;
D. A motor vehicle that has remained on private property
without the consent of the owner or person in control of the property for
a period of more than 15 days;
E. Leaving a disabled or inoperable motor vehicle upon private
property for more than 15 days, unless the same is stored completely within
a building on private property so that the same is not visible to the public;
F. Failure of any motor vehicle to bear a current state
registration tor more than 15 days no matter where that vehicle is situate,
unless the vehicle is stored completely within a building on private property
so that the same cannot be seen by the public; or
G. The failure of any motor vehicle to bear a current official
state inspection emblem for more than 15 days no matter where that vehicle
is situate, unless the vehicle is stored completely within a building on private
property so that the same cannot be seen by the public.
Any police officer of the Township is hereby authorized to remove any
abandoned motor vehicle or junked motor vehicle from the street or from public
or private property after said fifteen-day period and to cause such motor
vehicle to be stored temporarily pending determination of ownership and notice
to the owner thereof of its removal. Such police officer shall immediately
notify the owner or reputed owner of said motor vehicle of its removal and
of the intention of the Township to dispose of the motor vehicle unless it
is claimed and the costs of removal and storage paid within five days after
the date of mailing of the notice.
In the event that any abandoned motor vehicle or junked motor vehicle is not claimed and the costs of its removal and storage not paid within five days of the mailing of the notice prescribed in §
116-3 above, or in the event that the identity or whereabouts of the owner cannot be determined after a reasonable investigation, application shall be made by the Township for a title or certificate of junk in its name and the motor vehicle disposed of as provided in the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code or any amendment thereto.
Any person who violates or permits a violation of this chapter shall,
upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought before a District Justice
under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, be guilty of a summary
offense and shall be punishable by a fine of not less than $50 nor more than
$1,000, plus costs of prosecution. In default of payment thereof, the defendant
may be sentenced to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 30 days. Each day
or portion thereof that such violation continues or is permitted to continue
shall constitute a separate offense, and each section of this chapter that
is violated shall also constitute a separate offense.