[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Lexington 2-23-1998 by Ord. No. 1998-3 (Ch. 16 of the 1998 Code)[1]. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Alcoholic beverages — See Ch. 5.
Burning — See Ch. 37.
Dogs and other animals — See Ch. 44.
Firearms and fireworks — See Ch. 71.
Nuisances — See Ch. 118.
Parks — See Ch. 130.
Raffles — See Ch. 148.
Sexually oriented businesses — See Ch. 167.
Snowmobiles — See Ch. 178.
Trespassing — See Ch. 227.
Vehicles and traffic — See Ch. 240.
[1]
Editor's Note: The following sections of former Ch. 16 were deleted 6-14-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-4: 16.2, Assault, Battery; 16.11, Disturbing Funeral Processions; 16.18, Keeping or Possessing Indecent Materials; 16.24, Dog Fights, Etc.; 16.25, Cruelty to Animals; 16.26, Lottery Tickets and Chances; 16.27, Inducing to Bet; 16.28, Sale or Purchase of Chances; 16.29, Keeping House of Ill Fame; 16.30, Prostitutes Prohibited from Being on the Streets; 16.31, Leasing Premises for Immoral Purposes; 16.32, Inmate of House of Ill Fame; 16.33, Enticing to Enter House of Ill Fame; 16.34, Evidence, General Reputation of House Sufficient; 16.37, Excavation in Streets, Protection; 16.39, Medicine by Deceptive Name; 16.40, Sale of Poison, Labels; 16.44, Loitering; 16.58, Resisting Officer.
It shall be unlawful for any person to have in his possession any nippers, of the description known as "burglar's nippers," pick-lock, skeleton key, key to be used with bit or bits, jimmy or other burglar's instruments or tools, of whatever kind or description, unless it be shown that such possession is innocent or for a lawful purpose.
It shall be unlawful to disturb the peace of the City of Lexington or the quiet of any private family or person therein, by loud or unusual noises, by blowing of horns or other instruments, or by the unnecessary blowing of steam whistles, or by the beating of drums, kettles, or other sounding vessels or instruments, or by the ringing of bells, or crying of goods, or by loud or boisterous laughing or singing, or by creating false alarms, as by crying "fire" or "police," or by violent or tumultuous carriage, or by shouting, cursing, quarreling, challenging to fight, or fighting, or by any disorderly conduct.
No person shall keep or harbor within the City of Lexington any dog, cow, calf, hog, or other animal which, by barking, howling, bawling, or by other noises, shall disturb the peace and quiet of any family, individual, or neighborhood.
No person shall challenge another to fight, within the City of Lexington, or shall threaten or intimidate another, or shall use any profane, obscene, or offensive language, or shall indulge in any conduct toward another pretending to provoke a disturbance or breach of the peace.
No person within the City of Lexington shall falsely represent himself to be an officer of the City or shall, without being duly authorized by the City, exercise or attempt to exercise any of the duties, functions, or powers of a City officer.
No two or more persons shall, within the City of Lexington, assemble together for any unlawful purpose or, being assembled, shall act in concert to do an unlawful act, with force and violence against the property of the City, or the person or property of another, or against the peace or to the terror of the citizens or other persons in the City, or shall make any movement or preparations therefor.
No person shall knowingly suffer or permit any assemblage for the purpose of committing any unlawful act or breach of the peace, or any riotous, offensive, or disorderly conduct, in or upon premises owned or occupied by him/her or under his/her control and within the City of Lexington.
No person shall, within the limits of the City of Lexington, disquiet or disturb any congregation or assembly met for any lawful purpose, religious or otherwise, by making a noise, or by any rude or indecent behavior, profane discourse, or disorderly conduct, within their place of meeting, or so near the same as to disturb the order or solemnity of the meeting.
No person shall, in the City of Lexington, disturb or disquiet any lawful assemblage or association of people by any rude or indecent behavior, or by any disorderly conduct, or shall create any disturbance, or be guilty of any disorderly conduct, at or near any election poll.
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons, in the City of Lexington, to loiter or congregate about or upon any stairway or doorway, window, or in front of any business or dwelling house, theater, lecture room, church, or street corner, or elsewhere, and by so doing obstruct or interfere with the free passage of persons entering or occupying such building or premises, or by their language, conversation, or conduct annoy, insult, or disturb any person passing along any street or alley, or occupying, residing, or doing business in any of said houses or other places.
No person shall purposely or heedlessly cast or throw any stone, brickbat, clod, snowball, or other missile from or onto any public place, or at any house or person, within the City of Lexington.
No person shall climb upon or into any wagon or other vehicle, while the same may be in motion, or attach any sled or cart to any such vehicle, without the consent of the driver thereof; nor shall any person willfully molest, damage or injure, in any fashion, within the City of Lexington, any vehicle or other conveyance of another.
It shall be unlawful for any person who is in a state of intoxication or drunkenness to be or appear in any street or public place or places or premises open to public view, within the City of Lexington, or in any private house, or place, to the annoyance of any person.
It shall be unlawful for any person to use any profane or obscene language, in any place within the City of Lexington, so loud as to be overheard by persons passing nearby, or to behave in any disorderly manner.
Any person who shall, in any public place or place open to the public view, within the City of Lexington, write, draw, cut, make, or exhibit any lewd or indecent word, sentence, design, or figure shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor.
No person within the City of Lexington shall indecently exhibit any horse, jack, or other male animal, or let any horse, jack, or other male animal to any like female animal, unless in some enclosed place to be approved by the Aldermen and entirely out of public view.
No person shall bring or cause to be brought into the City of Lexington for the purpose of sale or exhibition, or shall keep, sell, offer or expose for sale, any obscene, immoral, or indecent publication, book, pamphlet, paper, print, picture, illustration, model, cast, instrument, or article of indecent or immoral use, or shall advertise the same for sale or exhibition.
No person shall sleep in or upon any street, avenue, alley, or other public place in the City of Lexington or in or upon any private lot or premises, without the consent of the owner or occupant of such lot or premises.
No person shall make, within the City of Lexington, any indecent exposure of his or her person, or shall appear in any public place, or place exposed to public view, in attire not belonging to his or her sex, or in an indecent or lewd attire, or in a state of nudity or partial nudity, or shall be guilty of any other immoral, indecent, or lewd act.
No person shall exhibit or perform, or assist in exhibiting or performing, within the City of Lexington, any obscene, indecent, or lewd play, or other representation, or shall knowingly permit the same to be exhibited or performed in any building or hall owned or controlled by him/her.
No person, firm or corporation shall show or otherwise exhibit any diseased, maimed, mutilated, or otherwise deformed person or animal to the public view and for gain in the City of Lexington.
No person shall kill, attempt to kill, or wound, by the use of firearms, bow and arrow, pelting with stones, sling shots, or otherwise, any birds or squirrels within the limits of the City of Lexington.
No person shall throw, cast, lay, or place on any sidewalk within the City of Lexington any rind, peel, or other refuse.
It shall be unlawful for any person to play upon, or about, any railroad track, depot, locomotive, or car within the City of Lexington, or to climb upon or to jump from any car, or train of cars, or from one car to another while the same may be in motion.
No person shall distribute, cast, throw, or place in or upon or along any of the streets, alleys, or public places of the City of Lexington any handbills, pamphlets, circulars, books, or advertisements for the purpose or with the intent of advertising, or making known in a general or promiscuous manner, any business, occupation, profession, medical treatment, medicine, or anything whatsoever.
No person shall engage in any game, sport, amusement, or exhibit any machine or show, or any animal, or indulge in any acrobatic feats, or do anything else in the streets or upon the sidewalks which shall interfere with the passage of vehicles or persons along the streets and sidewalks.
No person shall permit any dangerous animal to run at large, or shall lead any such animal with a chain or rope, or other appliance, whether such animal be muzzled or unmuzzled, in any street, avenue, lane, highway, or public place within the corporate limits of the City of Lexington.
No person shall fire, discharge, set off, or use, within the limits of the City of Lexington, any "BB" gun, pellet gun, or other similar instrument from which a missile is discharged.
It shall be unlawful to make, aid, countenance, or assist in making any improper noise, riot, disturbance, breach of the peace, or diversion tending to a breach of the peace, in the street or elsewhere in the City of Lexington, or to collect in bodies or crowds for unlawful purposes or for any purpose to the annoyance or disturbance of travelers and residents in the City.
No person shall willfully, maliciously, or negligently break, deface, injure, or destroy any property of the state, county, or City, or any private property.
No person shall, within the City of Lexington, cut injure, remove, or destroy any fruit, ornamental, or shade tree, or boxing around the same; shall injure, remove, or destroy any fence, railing, gate, post, or sign upon any public ground, sidewalk, or private premises; or shall enter any private premises against the consent of the owner or occupant thereof, or shall trespass upon any private premises, or public grounds, or injure, take away, or destroy any tree, shrub, fruit, flower, plant, vegetable, or other thing which may be therein for ornament or utility.
No person shall purposely or heedlessly cast or throw any stone, brick, or other missile from or into any street or other public place, or at, against, or into any building, shade tree, or other property, or shall climb upon or walk upon the top or capping of any fence or railing, or climb into any shade or ornamental tree upon any sidewalk or elsewhere, without the consent of the owner or occupant thereof, or shall in any way injure or deface any building, fence, gate, or shade tree, or shall meddle with or injure any well, cistern, hydrant, pump, or other property within the City of Lexington.
No person shall, without the consent of the owner or occupant of premises, post, stick, or place any handbill, show bill, placard, or notice upon any building, wall, fence, telegraph, telephone or electric light pole, or tree, or shall mark, scratch, cut, or otherwise deface any part of any building, fence, or tree.
It shall be unlawful to willfully or maliciously change, remove, or destroy any stone, stake, or post set or placed to mark the corner of any lot or parcel of ground, street, or alley, or to show the grade of any street, alley, or sidewalk in the City of Lexington.
No person shall dig, cut, or remove any sod or earth from any street or other place within the City of Lexington without a permit from the Street Superintendent, or from any premises not his own without the consent of the owner.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
It shall be unlawful to willfully, maliciously, or negligently walk upon or across, or ride or drive any animal or vehicle upon or across any lawn, grass plat, or flower bed in or upon any of the streets, avenues, parks, or public places of the City of Lexington, or to walk upon or across, or ride or drive any animal or vehicle upon or cross any private lawn, grass plat, or flower bed without the consent of the owner thereof.
All idle persons who have no visible means of support, or live without lawful employment, or habitually loiter or wander about, or lodge in outhouses, market places, sheds, barns, or in the open air, or beg or go from door to door, or place themselves in the streets or other public places to beg or receive alms shall be deemed vagrants.
No person shall knowingly send, bring, or leave any pauper in the City of Lexington not belonging thereto, or shall aid or abet the same, or shall supply with means or assist any such pauper, or person likely to become a pauper, to come into or remain in the City in order that he/she or she may become a charge to the corporation.
No person shall bring or cause to be brought into the City of Lexington with intent to sell the same as food for human consumption, or to sell, expose, or offer for sale within the City for human consumption, any sick, diseased, unsound, or crippled animal, fish, bird, or fowl, or the flesh thereof, or the flesh of any animal, fish, bird, or fowl that may have died of any disease or accident, or which was in an overheated condition when killed, or any blown, cased, plaited, raised, stuffed, putrid, impure, or unwholesome meat, or the flesh of any calf, pig, or lamb, under four weeks old, or the flesh of any animal so far advanced in pregnancy as to make the meat unfit for food, or the flesh of any horse, bull, boar, ram, dog, or cat or the flesh of any animal not commonly known, or used as, or deemed wholesome or fit for food, or any stale, unsound, damaged, or unwholesome vegetables, fruit, bread, flour, or other article of provisions or substance or material used as food for human consumption, or any milk adulterated with water or other substance, or milk from diseased cows, or from cows fed upon swill or garbage, or milk from cows for the most part kept tied up in stables, or any butter or cheese made from any such milk, or other article. Each exposure for sale of said unsound, unwholesome, or adulterated article, as aforesaid, shall constitute a separate and distinct offense under this section; provided, also, that all articles exhibited or kept at any place within the City where such articles are usually kept for sale, whether the same be sold or not, shall be deemed an exposure for sale within the meaning of this section.
It shall be unlawful to keep or maintain any privy, vault, cesspool or sink in the City of Lexington in an offensive or unclean condition. The City Marshal shall notify the owner, agent, or occupant of the premises to which any such vault belongs to cleanse the same within five days and in a manner so as to eliminate the unsanitary condition. Any person so notified shall comply, within the time and in the manner mentioned in said notice.
[Added 9-17-1975 by Ord. No. 1975-7]
A. 
It shall be unlawful to consume any intoxicating liquor, possess any intoxicating liquor which is not in the original container or holder, or to possess any intoxicating liquor not sealed in the original bottle, can or container at or upon any public assembly building, place, street, alley or parking lot within the City of Lexington, McLean County, Illinois.
B. 
Any person violating this section shall be fined in an amount not to exceed $750 for each offense.
[Amended 6-14-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-4]
[Added 9-17-1975 by Ord. No. 1975-8; amended 10-20-1982 by Ord. No. 1982-7; 6-13-1988 by Ord. No. 1988-6]
A. 
It is unlawful for a person less than 17 years of age to be present at or upon any public assembly, building, place, street or highway within the jurisdictional limits of the City of Lexington at the following times unless accompanied and supervised by a parent, legal guardian or other responsible companion at least 18 years of age approved by the parent or legal guardian or unless engaged in a business or occupation which the laws of Illinois authorize a person less than 17 years of age to perform:
(1) 
Between 12:01 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. Saturday;
(2) 
Between 12:01 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. Sunday;
(3) 
Between 11:00 p.m. on Sunday to Thursday, inclusive, and 6:00 a.m. on the following day.
B. 
It is unlawful for a parent, legal guardian or other person to knowingly permit a person in his custody or control to violate Subsection A of this section.
C. 
A person convicted of a violation of any provision of this section shall be fined in an amount not to exceed $750.
[Amended 6-14-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-4]
D. 
Defenses. It shall be a defense to prosecution under Subsections A or B that the minor was:
[Added 6-14-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-4]
(1) 
Accompanied by the minor's parent or guardian or other person in custody or control of the minor;
(2) 
On an errand at the direction of the minor's parent or guardian, without any detour or stop;
(3) 
In a motor vehicle involved in interstate travel;
(4) 
Engaged in an employment activity or going to or returning home from an employment activity, without any detour or stop;
(5) 
Involved in an emergency;
(6) 
On the sidewalk abutting the minor's residence or abutting the residence of a next-door neighbor if the neighbor did not complain to the Police Department about the minor's presence;
(7) 
Attending an official school, religious, or other recreational activity supervised by adults and sponsored by a government or governmental agency, a civic organization, or another similar entity that takes responsibility for the minor, or going to or returning home from, without any detour or stop, an official school, religious, or other recreational activity supervised by adults and sponsored by a government or governmental agency, a civic organization, or another similar entity that takes responsibility for the minor;
(8) 
Exercising First Amendment rights protected by the United States Constitution, such as the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, and the right of assembly; or
(9) 
Married or had been married or is an emancipated minor under the Emancipation of Minors Act.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 750 ILCS 30/1 et seq.
[Added 3-28-1994 by Ord. No. 1994-4; amended 9-8-2003; 6-14-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-4]
A. 
Sale of tobacco to minors. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation to sell, buy for, furnish, exchange, or give away any cigarettes, cigars, or tobacco in any form to children under the age of 18 years.
B. 
Possession of tobacco by minors. No minor under 18 years of age shall have in his possession any cigar or cigarette or tobacco in any of its forms.
C. 
Penalty. Any person who violates this section shall be fined in an amount not to exceed $750.
[Amended 6-14-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-4]
Any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of this chapter for which another penalty is not provided shall be fined in an amount not to exceed $750.
[Added 3-26-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-03]
A. 
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
CANNABIS
Includes marijuana, hashish and other substances which are identified as including any parts of the plant Cannabis Sativa, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof, the resin extracted from any part of such plant; and any compound, manufacture, salt, derivatives, mixture or preparation of such plant, its seeds or resin, including tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and all other cannabinol derivatives, including its naturally occurring or synthetically produced ingredients, whether produced directly or indirectly by extraction, or independently by means of chemical synthesis or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis; but shall not include the mature stalks of such plant, fiber produced from such stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of such plant, any other compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture or preparation of such mature stalks (except the resin extracted therefrom), fiber, oil or cake, or the sterilized seed of such plant which is incapable of germination.
CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE
Includes any controlled substance or controlled substance analog as defined in Section 102 of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (720 ILCS 570/102), as amended from time to time.
DELIVER or DELIVERY
The actual, constructive, or attempted transfer of possession, with or without consideration, whether or not there is an agency relationship.
DRUG PARAPHERNALIA
All equipment, products and materials of any kind, including methamphetamine manufacturing materials as defined in Section 10 of the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act (720 ILCS 646/10), which are used, intended for use, designed for use, or peculiar to or marketed for use in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, preparing, testing, analyzing, packaging, repackaging, storing, containing, concealing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling or otherwise introducing into the human body cannabis, a controlled substance, or a look-alike substance in violation of the Cannabis Control Act (720 ILCS 550/1 et seq.), the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (720 ILCS 570/100 et seq.), the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act (720 ILCS 646/1 et seq.), or this section. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:
(1) 
Kits that are possessed or intended for use, designed for use, or peculiar to or marketed for use in manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing or preparing cannabis or a controlled substance.
(2) 
Isomerization devices that are used, intended for use, designed for use, or peculiar to or marketed for use to increase the potency of any species of plant which is cannabis or a controlled substance.
(3) 
Testing equipment that is used, intended for use, designed for use, or peculiar to or marketed for private home use in identifying or in analyzing the strength, effectiveness or purity of cannabis or controlled substances.
(4) 
Diluents and adulterants that are used, intended for use, designed for use, or peculiar to or marketed for use in cutting cannabis or a controlled substance by private persons.
(5) 
Scales and balances used, intended for use, or designed for use, or peculiar to and marketed for use in weighing or measuring controlled substances or cannabis.
(6) 
Containers and other objects used, intended for use, designed for use, or peculiar to or marketed for use in storing or concealing controlled substances.
(7) 
Objects that are used or intended for use, designed for use, or peculiar to or marketed for use in injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing cannabis, cocaine, hashish, hashish oil, or any controlled substance into the human body including, where applicable, but not limited to, the following items.
(a) 
Metal, wooden, acrylic, glass, stone, plastic, or ceramic pipes, with or without screens, permanent screens, hashish heads, or punctured metal bowls.
(b) 
Water pipes;
(c) 
Carburetion tubes and devices;
(d) 
Smoking and carburetion masks;
(e) 
Miniature cocaine spoons and cocaine vials;
(f) 
Carburetor pipes;
(g) 
Electric pipes;
(h) 
Air-driven pipes;
(i) 
Chillums;
(j) 
Bongs;
(k) 
Ice pipes or chillers.
(8) 
Any item whose purpose, as announced or described by the seller, is for use in violation of this section or the Drug Paraphernalia Control Act (720 ILCS 600/1 et seq.).
LOOK-ALIKE SUBSTANCE
A substance which: 1) by its overall dosage unit appearance, including shape, color, size, markings or lack thereof, taste, consistency, or any other identifying physical characteristic of the substance, would lead a reasonable person to believe that the substance is cannabis, a controlled substance, or a synthetic drug; or 2) is expressly or impliedly represented to be cannabis, a controlled substance, or a synthetic drug, or distributed under circumstances which would lead a reasonable person to believe that the substance is cannabis, a controlled substance, or a synthetic drug. For the purpose of determining whether the representations made or the circumstances of the distribution would lead a reasonable person to believe the substance to be cannabis, a controlled substance, or a synthetic drug under this clause 2), the court or other authority may consider the following factors in addition to any other factor that may be relevant:
(1) 
Statements made by the owner or person in control of the substance concerning its nature, use or effect;
(2) 
Statements made to the buyer or recipient that the substance may be resold for profit;
(3) 
Whether the substance is packaged in the manner normally used for the illegal distribution of controlled substances;
(4) 
Whether the distribution or attempted distribution included an exchange of or demand for money or other property as consideration and whether the amount of the consideration was substantially greater than the reasonable retail market value of the substance.
SYNTHETIC CANNABINOID
Any laboratory-created compound that functions similarly to the active ingredient in marijuana, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), including, but not limited to, any quantity of a natural or synthetic material, compound, mixture, preparation, substance, and their analog (including isomers, esters, ethers, and salts of isomers) containing a cannabinoid receptor agonist.
SYNTHETIC DRUGS
Any product containing a synthetic cannabinoid, stimulant, or psychedelic/hallucinogen, as those terms are defined herein.
SYNTHETIC STIMULANT
Any compound that mimics the effects of any federally controlled Schedule I substance such as cathinone, methcathinone, MDMA and MDEA, including, but not limited to, any quantity of a natural or synthetic material, compound, mixture, preparation, substance and their analogs (including salts, isomers, and salts of isomers) containing substances which have a stimulating effect on the central nervous system.
SYNTHETIC PSYCHEDELIC/HALLUCINOGEN
Any compound that mimics the effects of any federally controlled Schedule I substance, including, but not limited to, any quantity of a natural or synthetic material, compound, mixture, preparation, substance, and their analogs, (including salts, isomers, esters, ethers, and salts of isomers) containing substances which have a psychedelic/hallucinogenic effect on the central nervous system and/or brain.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to possess, keep for sale, sell, or deliver for any commercial consideration cannabis, a controlled substance, a synthetic drug, a look-alike substance, or drug paraphernalia.
C. 
It shall be unlawful and it is hereby declared to be a nuisance for any store, place or premises to keep for sale, offer for sale, sell, or deliver for any commercial consideration any synthetic drug or item of drug paraphernalia.
D. 
It shall be an affirmative defense to a charge under this section that the accused had authority to possess, keep for sale, offer for sale, sell, or deliver any item or substance prohibited in this Section pursuant to the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (720 ILCS 570/101 et seq.), or that the accused is legally authorized to possess hypodermic syringes or needles under the Hypodermic Syringes and Needles Act (720 ILCS 635/0.01 et seq.).
[Added 10-23-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-13]
It shall be unlawful for any person, after purchasing or otherwise obtaining alcoholic liquor, to sell, give or deliver such alcoholic liquor to another person under the age of 21 years, except in the performance of a religious ceremony or service.
[Added 10-23-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-13]
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person under the age of 21 years to purchase or accept a gift of alcoholic liquor or to have alcoholic liquor in his possession.
B. 
The presence in a private vehicle of any alcoholic liquor shall be prima facie evidence that it is in the possession of, and is being carried by, all persons occupying such vehicle at the time at which such alcoholic liquor is found, except under the following circumstances;
(1) 
If such liquor is found on the person of one of the occupants therein; or
(2) 
If such vehicle contains at least one occupant over 21 years of age.
[Added 10-23-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-13]
It shall be unlawful for any person under 21 years of age to consume alcoholic liquor.
[Added 11-9-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-8]
A. 
Truancy. It shall be unlawful for any person under the age of 18 years enrolled in a public, private or parochial school within the corporate, limits of the City to absent himself or herself from attendance at school without valid cause. Any person who should so absent himself or herself shall be guilty of the offense of truancy.
B. 
Excessive absenteeism. It shall be unlawful for any person under the age of 18 years enrolled in a public, private or parochial school within the corporate limits of the City to absent himself or herself from attendance at school for five or more student attendance days during any one school year, unless such absenteeism is for valid cause and has been approved by his or her school district.
C. 
Emergency conditions. Emergency or unforeseen absence due to illness or other causes beyond the control of the person so absenting himself or herself shall not constitute truancy or excessive absenteeism if a valid cause has been obtained from the parent or person in loco parentis and such valid cause is submitted in writing to the proper school authorities within 24 hours after such absence.
D. 
Valid cause. A valid cause for absence is an illness that would temporarily impair or interfere with a student's learning ability, observance of a religious holiday, death in the immediate family, family emergency, or such other circumstances which cause reasonable concern to the parent, guardian or custodian for the safety or health of the student. Valid cause shall not include babysitting, employment activities (unless specifically sanctioned by the student's school district) or any other reason that does not temporarily impair or interfere with a student's learning ability.
E. 
Suspended student. It shall be unlawful for any person under the age of 18 years having been suspended from a public, private or parochial school within the corporate limits of the City to be out and about in the City and away from his or her residence during school hours when school is in session.
F. 
Penalty. Any person found guilty of truancy or excessive absenteeism under this section shall be fined not less than $50 nor more than $750 for each offense. Any person found guilty of truancy or excessive absenteeism more than three times in any school year shall be fined not less than $300 nor more than $750 for each subsequent offense.
[Added 11-9-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-8]
A. 
It shall be unlawful for a parent or a person in loco parentis to knowingly permit any person under the age of 18 years to commit an act of truancy or excessive absenteeism, as defined in § 135-49 of this chapter.
B. 
A parent or person in loco parentis shall be considered to have knowingly permitted a minor under § 135-49 of this chapter to commit an act of truancy, as defined in said section, when the parent or person in loco parentis knows that said minor absents himself or herself from attendance at school without valid cause and the parent in loco parentis fails to act to insure that the minor attends the school in which he or she is enrolled.
C. 
A parent or person in loco parentis shall be considered to have knowingly permitted a person under the age of 18 years to commit the offense of excessive absenteeism, as defined above when the parent or person in loco parentis provides a written or oral excuse for the minor's attendance which is false or does not amount to valid cause.
D. 
A parent or person in loco parentis found guilty under this section shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $750 for each offense. A parent or person in loco parentis found guilty under this section more than three times in any one school year shall be fined not less than $300 nor more than $750 for each subsequent offense.