[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Westville 4-25-2012 by Ord. No. 4-2012. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Peddling and soliciting — See Ch. 254.
Secondhand sales — See Ch. 277.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
MERCHANT
One who purchases precious metals from the public and sells or otherwise exchanges or trades the precious metals to refiners or brokers or makes appraisals of the precious metals or otherwise conveys, melts down or alters said precious metals in any form.
PRECIOUS METALS
Metals that are considered to have a high economic value based upon their rarity, usefulness in industry, or value as an investment commodity. Precious metals include but are not limited to gold, silver, platinum or palladium and their alloys as defined in N.J.S.A. 51:5-1 et seq. and 51:6-1 et seq.
PURCHASE
Not only the exchange of money for precious metals, but the exchange or trading of any other tangible or intangible property for precious metals.
Every merchant with the Borough of Westville shall, upon the purchase of any precious metals from the public, be required to do as follows:
A. 
Record on a numbered receipt the name, address and telephone number of the purchaser; the name, address and telephone number of the seller or sellers; the time and date of the transaction; the net weight, in terms of pounds troy, pennyweight (troy) or kilograms/grams, of the precious metals; and fineness, in terms of karats for gold and sterling or coin for silver, in accordance with N.J.S.A. 51:5-1 et seq. and 51:6-1 et seq.
B. 
Supply to the Chief of Police of the Borough of Westville, within two (2) days from the date of purchase, on a form approved by the Borough of Westville, the information contained in Subsection A above, plus the following. The form must be signed by the seller and initialed by the clerk who made the transaction.
(1) 
A copy of the seller's driver's license to confirm his/her name, address and license number.
(2) 
The receipt number.
(3) 
A full description of the item or items purchased, including but not limited to marks, numbers, dates, sizes, shapes, initials, and monograms.
(4) 
The price paid for the item(s).
C. 
The precious metals are to be made available for inspection by the Chief of Police of the Borough of Westville or his designated representative for a period of five days from the date the information required above is received by the Chief of Police on the approved form. The precious metals shall remain in the same condition as when purchased and shall not be changed, modified, melted or disposed of by the purchaser until the five-day period has expired. During this five-day period, the precious metals shall be placed in public view at the purchaser's place of business. If the property is such that it would create a hardship on the merchant by holding the precious metals for such period, the merchant may present the property to the Chief of Police or his representative in order that it may be photographed and, if deemed necessary by the Chief of Police or his designated representative, an investigation be implemented. The Chief of Police or his designated representative has the authority to grant the merchant a waiver of the requirement under this section.
A. 
This chapter does not apply to purchases made by jewelers or other merchants from wholesalers or other suppliers, but shall only apply to those purchases made from the public or other retail purchases.
B. 
The merchant shall keep records of all wholesale purchases for a period of six months from the date of such purchase, which records shall be open to investigation by the Borough of Westville Police Department.
A. 
Violation of any provision of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a minimum fine of $100 or a maximum of $2,000 or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days or by a period of community service not exceeding 90 days. Each and every violation shall be considered a separate violation.
B. 
Any person who is convicted of violating the provisions of this chapter within one year of the date of a previous violation and who was fined for the previous violation may be sentenced by the court to an additional fine as a repeat offender. The additional fine imposed as a repeat offender shall not be less than the minimum or exceed the maximum fine provided herein, and same shall be calculated separately from the fine imposed for the violation of this chapter.