[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Bellmawr as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Alcoholic beverages — See Ch. 129.
Animals — See Ch. 137.
Curfew — See Ch. 179.
Firearms and weapons — See Ch. 216.
Noise — See Ch. 295.
[Adopted 3-16-1972 by Ord. No. 4-72 as Ch. 47 of the 1972 Code]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
PERSON
Any male, female, individual, partnership or corporation.
It shall be unlawful for any person to go from door to door or place himself in streets, highways or passages to beg or solicit alms or charity; or to wander abroad and beg or solicit charity under pretense of being or having been a soldier, marine or seafaring man; or to claim a loss by fire or other casualty or by war or other pretense or thing; or to wander abroad and lodge in taverns, inns, beer houses, houses of entertainment, market houses, outhouses, barns or other places, or in the open air, and not give a good account of himself; and it shall be unlawful for persons to leave or threaten to leave their families to be maintained by the Borough, township or county or to become chargeable thereto, or for persons not having sufficient property or means for their subsistence or support to live idly or not engage in some honest employment or not provide for themselves or families.
It shall be unlawful for any person to use or pretend to use or have any skill in physiognomy, palmistry or like crafty science or pretend to tell destinies or fortunes.
It shall be unlawful for any person, by word, act, sign or any device, to invite or solicit unlawful sexual intercourse or any other unlawful, indecent, lewd or lascivious act.
It shall be unlawful for any person to be apprehended having upon him any picklock, key, crow, jack, bit or other implement with intent to break and enter into any building; or to have upon him any pistol, hanger, cutlass, bludgeon or other offensive or dangerous weapon with intent to assault any person; or to be found in or near any dwelling house, warehouse, stable, barn, coach house, smokehouse or in any place of public resort or assemblage for business, worship, amusement or other lawful purpose with intent to steal any goods or chattels.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: The original section titled "Assembly of intoxicated persons; interference with others," which immediately followed this section, was repealed at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
[Amended 8-28-1975 by Ord. No. 7:14-75; 4-28-2016 by Ord. No. 03:04-16; 6-22-2017 by Ord. No. 05:11-17]
A. 
Open containers with alcoholic beverages prohibited; exceptions. No person shall have in his possession any open bottle or other container containing liquor, wine, beer or any other alcoholic beverage while on any public highway, public street, public sidewalk or public parking lot or lot, playground, park or other property owned by, belonging to or over which the Borough of Bellmawr has control or any public place in the Borough of Bellmawr, except those premises duly licensed for the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages on the premises.
B. 
Exceptions. The Borough Council of the Borough of Bellmawr, for good cause shown, may permit the drinking of beer at public parks or in other public areas by a resolution of the Borough Council, which resolution shall be preceded by a written request of the organization or organizations seeking such permission, addressed to the Borough Council, and which resolution shall state the hours within which such permission is granted and the exact location where such permission shall be in force.
It shall be unlawful for any person to dump on or tow to open fields or other private property, without first obtaining the permission of the owner of such property, any abandoned automobile parts or other junk.
It shall be unlawful for any person to dump ashes, paper, junk, refuse or garbage on any private property or on the public highways of the Borough other than in those places designated by the Borough as official dumps.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also Ch. 270, Littering.
It shall be unlawful for any person to deposit ashes, paper, junk, refuse or garbage for collection except in the following prescribed manner:
A. 
Garbage shall be put in a covered, leakproof container, and there shall not be mixed in said garbage any ashes, junk, broken glass, tin cans, etc.
B. 
Ashes and refuse shall be deposited in a leakproof container.
C. 
No container shall be used which, when filled, shall weigh more than 60 pounds.
D. 
Ashes, paper, junk, refuse or garbage shall not be placed outdoors for collection before the morning of the day when the same is to be collected, unless the the same shall be adequately covered to prevent the contents from being scattered.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also Ch. 382, Solid Waste.
It shall be unlawful for any person, by noisy or disorderly conduct in a public library or reading or meeting room, to disturb or interrupt the quiet and good order of those who resort to and use such library or reading or meeting room for reading, study or meeting.
It shall be unlawful for any person to enter a building or go upon lands belonging to a public school district or used and occupied for school purposes by a public school and break, injure or deface such building or any part thereof or the fences or outhouses belonging to or connected with such buildings or lands or to disturb the exercises of the school or molest or give annoyance to the children attending such school or any teacher therein.
It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully and maliciously ring or cause to be rung any bell or alarm of any fire company in the Borough and thereby give or cause to be given a false alarm of fire.
It shall be unlawful for any person, for pecuniary gain, to solicit any person in the house of a family in which a death has recently occurred for the purpose of selling or obtaining orders for funeral wreaths, flowers or like merchandise.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to obtain food, lodging or other accommodation or service at a hotel, inn, boarding or eating house, culinary establishment or hospital with intent to defraud the owner or keeper thereof.
B. 
Proof that lodging, food or other accommodation or service was obtained by false pretense or by false or fictitious show or pretense of any baggage or other property, or that the person refused or neglected to pay on demand or absconded without paying or offering to pay for such food, lodging or other accommodation or service, or that he gave in payment therefor negotiable paper on which payment was refused, or that he surreptitiously removed or attempted to remove his baggage, shall be prima facie proof of the fraudulent intent mentioned in Subsection A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to cast or throw any stick, stone, pebble or other substance or to shoot from any air gun, machine gun, shotgun, pistol or rifle any shot or ball at, against or into any trolley car, street railway car, steam railroad car, electric railroad car, railroad locomotive, motor omnibus or motor vehicle; to place any stick, stone or other substance upon any street railway passing thereon or the passengers therein; to unlawfully climb into or upon any coal car, either in motion or standing at any of the stations or depots of any railroad company in this state, and throw from the same any coal; or to take up from the tracks or alongside the tracks any coal so thrown from the cars.
It shall be unlawful for any person to spit on the floor, side, seat or platform of any vehicle utilized as a public conveyance.
It shall be unlawful for any person to travel on any vehicle used as a public conveyance without having paid his fare and with intent to avoid payment thereof or for any person, having paid his fare and having traveled on such vehicle used as a public conveyance to a point where, under the rule of the company operating the same, as announced by the conductor or operator or other person in charge of the vehicle, an additional fare is due, to refuse or fail to pay such additional fare or to leave such vehicle on demand.
It shall be unlawful for any person to trespass on any lands, except fresh meadow land over which the tide has ebbed and flowed continuously for 20 years or more, after being forbidden so to trespass by the owner, occupant, lessee or licensee thereof or after public notice on the part of the owner, occupant, lessee or licensee forbidding such trespassing shall have been conspicuously posted.
It shall be unlawful for the owner of any horse or any other animal which shall die to fail, within 12 hours after the death of said animal, to bury it outside the Borough limits at least four feet underground.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person owning or having charge or care of or keeping any cattle, horses, swine, sheep, goats or other animals to permit them to go at large on any public highways, squares, places or open lots within the Borough.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to interfere with or recover from, or attempt to interfere with or recover from, any official having charge of any animal as set forth in Subsection A herein.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to make or start or cause to be made or started any bonfire or any grass, rubbish or other fire of any kind for any purpose.
B. 
This section shall not apply to fires in stoves, ranges, heaters, fireplaces, fireboxes or screened containers constructed for that purpose.
No person shall place, insert or attach any coin or metal of any description in any electric cutout, cabinet box, fuse opening, switch or panel box which is not intended for the proper and lawful use of said apparatus or equipment.
It shall be unlawful for any person to make, aid, countenance or assist in making any improper noise, riot or breach of the peace in the streets or elsewhere within the Borough.
It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully and purposely disquiet, interrupt or disturb any assembly of people met for religious worship by noisy or indecent behavior within or about the place of worship.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to profanely swear and curse or make use of any indecent language along the streets or public places of the Borough.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to behave in an insulting manner or insult any person passing along the streets and public places of the Borough.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to injure, deface or destroy any Borough fire apparatus or to hinder or obstruct any Borough fire company or hook and ladder company, or any member thereof, from freely passing along the streets in said Borough to and from any fire, or hinder or obstruct the operations of the Fire Department or of any member thereof at any fire.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any unauthorized person to have in his possession, or make or cause to be made, or use or cause to be used, any key or keys of any fire engine, truck house, alarm box or other fire equipment.
C. 
It shall be unlawful for any person not a member of the Fire Department to use or wear the uniform or any part thereof regularly used by the members of said Department.
It shall be unlawful for any person to carelessly or recklessly drop, throw or project any stick, stone, snowball or other missile of any kind in a manner liable to maim or injure any person or damage the property of any person.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully break or cause to be broken any pane of glass, window or door or to throw or strike at any pane of glass, window or door.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to break, deface or damage any house or building or appurtenance thereof or any fence, pillar or post belonging thereto without leave of the owner or occupier.
It shall be unlawful for any person to enter any house, garden or enclosure and break, cut, root up or otherwise destroy any tree, shrub or plant there growing without leave of the owner or occupant.
It shall be unlawful for any parent or guardian to permit his or her minor children to violate any of the provisions of this article or any of the statutes of the State of New Jersey concerning misdemeanors.
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons to engage in any fight or combat with fists, sticks, clubs or any other instrument or implement, and it shall also be unlawful for any person or persons to aid or assist in any fight or combat.
It shall be unlawful for any ragpicker, scavenger or other person to cut, untie or otherwise unbundle on any street, highway or public place any paper or other combustible rubbish or refuse so tied or fastened together and placed for collection by any householder, owner, occupant or tenant on the sidewalk in front of or alongside of the property of such householder, owner, occupant or tenant.
It shall be unlawful for any person, with intent to cheat or defraud, to obtain from another any money or anything of value upon a promise or agreement to procure or to endeavor to procure for such other person any employment or a loan of money or anything of value.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly or designedly, by means of any false statement made orally or in writing, obtain from the Borough or from any officer, committee, commission or body thereof, or from any private or charitable organization or association of any kind, under pretense that he is poor and needy or out of employment, any money, personal property or other valuable thing.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person, by false representations as to his financial situation, to obtain from any department of public welfare or overseer of the poor of the Borough financial or other assistance in any form.
It shall be unlawful for any person to operate or cause to be operated, or to attempt to operate or attempt to cause to be operated, any automatic vending machine, slot machine, coin-box telephone or other receptacle designed to receive lawful coin of the United States of America in connection with the sale, use or enjoyment of property or service, by means of a slug or any false, counterfeited, mutilated, sweated or foreign coin or by any means, method, trick or device whatsoever not lawfully authorized by the owner, lessee or licensee of such machine, coin-box telephone or other such receptacle, or to take, obtain or receive from or in connection with any such automatic vending machine, slot machine, coin-box telephone or other such receptacle any goods, wares, merchandise, gas, electric current, article of value or the use or enjoyment of any telephone or telegraph facilities or service or of any musical instrument, phonograph or other property or service, without depositing in and surrendering to such machine, coin-box telephone or receptacle lawful coin of the United States of America in the amount required therefor by the owner, lessee or licensee of such machine, coin-box telephone or receptacle.
A. 
It shall be unlawful to play for money or other valuable thing at cards, dice or other games with one or more die or dice or with any other instrument, engine or device in the nature of dice having one or more figure or figures or number or numbers, or at billiards, pool, tennis, bowls or shuffleboard, or A.B.C. or E.O. table or other tables, or at faro bank or other banks of a like nature by whatever name known, or with any slot machine or device in the nature of a slot machine, or with any other instrument, engine, apparatus or device having one or more figure or figures or number or numbers thereon.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to have or keep in his place of business or other premises any slot machine or device in the nature of a slot machine which may be used for the playing for money or other valuable thing.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to habitually or otherwise buy or sell what is commonly known as a pool, or any interest or share in any such pool, or to make or take what is commonly known as a book, upon the running, pacing or trotting, either within or without this state, of any horse, mare or gelding, or to conduct the practices commonly known as bookmaking or pool selling, or to keep a place to which persons may resort for engaging in any such practices or for betting upon the event of any horse race or other race or contest, either within or without this state, or for gambling in any form, or for any person to aid, abet or assist in any such acts.
B. 
Whenever any furniture, gaming apparatus or implements made or used for gambling or any unlawful game shall be seized by the police, constabulary or other officers, the Director of Public Safety of the Borough where such seizure is made shall have the same destroyed or rendered useless for the uses and purposes aforesaid, and it shall be unlawful to return them to the person or persons owning the same or to any other person, except the duly constituted law or police officers of the county and state.
Any person violating any provision of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to a fine not exceeding $2,000 or imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 90 days or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days, or any combination thereof, in the discretion of a court of competent jurisdiction. Each and every day that such violation shall continue shall be a further and separate offense under the terms of this article, subject to the penalties herein prescribed.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
[Adopted 3-16-1972 by Ord. No. 4-72 as Ch. 78 of the 1972 Code]
The finding by the Bellmawr Municipal Court that said damage to property was willfully or maliciously caused by said minor shall be sufficient to determine the liability upon such parent or guardian, and the Court may then fix the amount and method of payment of compensation to be paid by such parent or guardian.
Failure to make such payment or payments as fixed by the Municipal Court shall be deemed to be a violation of this article, and, upon conviction thereof, the violator shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding $2,000 or imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 90 days or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days, or any combination thereof.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).