As used in this Article, the following terms mean:
A person enters or remains in or upon premises when he or
she is not licensed or privileged to do so. A person who, regardless
of his or her purpose, enters or remains in or upon premises which
are at the time open to the public does so with license and privilege
unless he or she defies a lawful order not to enter or remain, personally
communicated to him or her by the owner of such premises or by other
authorized person. A license or privilege to enter or remain in a
building which is only partly open to the public is not a license
or privilege to enter or remain in that part of the building which
is not open to the public.
To interfere with something improperly, to meddle with it,
displace it, make unwarranted alterations in its existing condition,
or to deprive, temporarily, the owner or possessor of that thing.
An enterprise which provides gas, electric, steam, water,
sewage disposal, or communication, video, internet, or voice over
internet protocol services, and any common carrier. It may be either
publicly or privately owned or operated.
[Ord. No. 4728, 6-26-2023]
A.
A person commits the offense of tampering if he/she:
1.
Tampers with property of another for the purpose of causing
substantial inconvenience to that person or to another; or
2.
Unlawfully rides in or upon another's automobile, airplane,
motorcycle, motorboat or other motor-propelled vehicle; or
3.
Tampers or makes connection with property of a utility; or
4.
Tampers with, or causes to be tampered with, any meter or other
property of an electric, gas, steam or water utility, the effect of
which tampering is either:
5.
Enters a motor vehicle that he or she does not own or lease, without
the owner's or lessee's permission for any illegitimate or unlawful
purpose. For purposes of this Section "enter" shall
mean being physically present in or accessing a vehicle in a way that
would lead a reasonable person to believe said conduct was in furtherance
of a crime; or
6.
Tampers with the motor vehicle of another, with knowledge that he
or she does not own such vehicle or have permission to enter such
vehicle, for the purpose of attempting to steal the motor vehicle
or its contents, the effect of which tampering includes:
B.
In any prosecution under Subsection (A)(4), proof that a meter or any other property of a utility has been tampered with, and the person or persons accused received the use or direct benefit of the electric, gas, steam or water service with one (1) or more of the effects described in Subsection (A)(4), shall be sufficient to support an inference which the trial court may submit to the trier of fact from which the trier of fact may conclude that there has been a violation of such Subsection by the person or persons who use or receive the direct benefit of the electric, gas, steam or water service.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
A.
A person does not commit an offense by damaging, tampering with,
operating, riding in or upon or making connection with property of
another if he/she does so under a claim of right and has reasonable
grounds to believe he/she has such a right.
B.
The defendant shall have the burden of injecting the issue of claim
of right.
C.
No person who, as a tenant, willfully or wantonly destroys, defaces,
damages, impairs or removes any part of a leased structure or dwelling
unit, or the facilities, equipment or appurtenances thereof, may inject
the issue of claim of right.
A.
A person commits the offense of trespass in the first degree if he/she
knowingly enters unlawfully or knowingly remains unlawfully in a building
or inhabitable structure or upon real property.
B.
A person does not commit the offense of trespass by entering or remaining
upon real property unless the real property is fenced or otherwise
enclosed in a manner designed to exclude intruders or as to which
notice against trespass is given by:
A.
A
person commits the offense of trespass of a school bus if he or she
knowingly and unlawfully enters any part of or unlawfully operates
any school bus.
B.
For
the purposes of this Section, the terms "unlawfully enters" and "unlawfully
operates" refer to any entry or operation of a school bus which is
not:
A person commits the offense of reckless burning or exploding
if he/she recklessly starts a fire or causes an explosion and thereby
damages or destroys the property of another.
A.
A
person commits the offense of negligent burning or exploding if he/she
with criminal negligence causes damage to property or to the woodlands,
cropland, grassland, prairie, or marsh of another by:
A.
A person commits the offense of stealing if he or she:
1.
Appropriates property or services of another with the purpose
to deprive him or her thereof, either without his or her consent or
by means of deceit or coercion;
2.
Attempts to appropriate anhydrous ammonia or liquid nitrogen
of another with the purpose to deprive him or her thereof, either
without his or her consent or by means of deceit or coercion; or
3.
For the purpose of depriving the owner of a lawful interest
therein, receives, retains or disposes of property of another knowing
that it has been stolen, or believing that it has been stolen.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
A.
No person shall drive a motor vehicle so as to cause it to leave
the premises of an establishment at which motor fuel offered for retail
sale was dispensed into the fuel tank of such motor vehicle unless
payment or authorized charge for motor fuel dispensed has been made.
B.
A person found guilty or pleading guilty to stealing pursuant to Section 210.1110 for the theft of motor fuel as described in Subsection (A) shall have his/her driver's license suspended by the court beginning on the date of the court's order of conviction. The person shall submit all of his/her operator's and chauffeur's licenses to the court upon conviction and the court shall forward all such driver's licenses and the order of suspension of driving privileges to the Department of Revenue for administration of such order.
[1]
Editor's Note: This Section previously pertained to receiving
stolen property. However, the authorizing statute, former RSMo. §570.080,
was repealed without replacement by SB 491 in the 2014 Legislative
Session, effective 1-1-2017.
A.
A
person commits the offense of financial exploitation of an elderly
person or a person with a disability if such person knowingly obtains
control over the property of the elderly person or person with a disability
with the intent to permanently deprive the person of the use, benefit
or possession of his or her property thereby benefitting the offender
or detrimentally affecting the elderly person or person with a disability
by:
1.
Deceit;
2.
Coercion;
3.
Creating or confirming another person's impression which is false
and which the offender does not believe to be true;
4.
Failing to correct a false impression which the offender previously
has created or confirmed;
5.
Preventing another person from acquiring information pertinent to
the disposition of the property involved;
6.
Selling or otherwise transferring or encumbering property, failing
to disclose a lien, adverse claim or other legal impediment to the
enjoyment of the property, whether such impediment is or is not valid,
or is or is not a matter of official record;
7.
Promising performance which the offender does not intend to perform
or knows will not be performed. Failure to perform standing alone
is not sufficient evidence to prove that the offender did not intend
to perform; or
8.
Undue influence, which means the use of influence by someone who
exercises authority over an elderly person or person with a disability
in order to take unfair advantage of that person's vulnerable state
of mind, neediness, pain, or agony. "Undue influence" includes, but
is not limited to, the improper or fraudulent use of a power of attorney,
guardianship, conservatorship, or other fiduciary authority.
B.
Nothing
in this Section shall be construed to limit the remedies available
to the victim pursuant to any State law relating to domestic violence.
C.
Nothing
in this Section shall be construed to impose criminal liability on
a person who has made a good-faith effort to assist the elderly person
or person with a disability in the management of his or her property,
but through no fault of his or her own has been unable to provide
such assistance.
D.
Nothing
in this Section shall limit the ability to engage in bona fide estate
planning, to transfer property and to otherwise seek to reduce estate
and inheritance taxes; provided that such actions do not adversely
impact the standard of living to which the elderly person or person
with a disability has become accustomed at the time of such actions.
E.
It
shall not be a defense to financial exploitation of an elderly person
or person with a disability that the accused reasonably believed that
the victim was not an elderly person or person with a disability.
F.
Medicaid Funds. It shall be unlawful in violation of this
Section for any person receiving or in the possession of funds of
a Medicaid-eligible elderly person or person with a disability residing
in a facility licensed under Chapter 198, RSMo., to fail to remit
to the facility in which the Medicaid-eligible person resides all
money owing the facility resident from any source, including, but
not limited to, social security, railroad retirement, or payments
from any other source disclosed as resident income contained in the
records of the Department of Social Services, Family Support Division,
or its successor. The Department of Social Services, Family Support
Division, or its successor is authorized to release information from
its records containing the resident's income or assets to any prosecuting
or circuit attorney in the State of Missouri for purposes of investigating
or prosecuting any suspected violation of this Section.
G.
The
offense of financial exploitation of an elderly person or person with
a disability is an ordinance violation.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
A.
A person commits the offense of fraudulent use of a credit device
or debit device if he or she uses a credit device or debit device
for the purpose of obtaining services or property, knowing that:
B.
A
person commits the offense of fraudulent use of a credit device or
debit device if he or she uses a credit device or debit device for
the purpose of paying property taxes and knowingly cancels such charges
or payment without just cause. It shall be prima facie evidence of
a violation of this Section if a person cancels such charges or payment
after obtaining a property tax receipt to obtain license tags from
the Missouri Department of Revenue.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
A.
A
person commits the offense of deceptive business practice if in the
course of engaging in a business, occupation or profession, he or
she recklessly:
1.
Uses or possesses for use a false weight or measure, or any other
device for falsely determining or recording any quality or quantity;
2.
Sells, offers, displays for sale, or delivers less than the represented
quantity of any commodity or service;
3.
Takes or attempts to take more than the represented quantity of any
commodity or service when as buyer he or she furnishes the weight
or measure;
4.
Sells, offers, or exposes for sale adulterated or mislabeled commodities;
5.
Makes a false or misleading written statement for the purpose of
obtaining property or credit;
6.
Promotes the sale of property or services by a false or misleading
statement in any advertisement; or
7.
Advertises in any manner the sale of property or services with the
purpose not to sell or provide the property or services:
A.
A person commits the offense of alteration or removal of item numbers
if he/she with the purpose of depriving the owner of a lawful interest
therein:
1.
Destroys, removes, covers, conceals, alters, defaces or causes
to be destroyed, removed, covered, concealed, altered or defaced the
manufacturer's original serial number or other distinguishing owner-applied
number or mark on any item which bears a serial number attached by
the manufacturer or distinguishing number or mark applied by the owner
of the item for any reason whatsoever;
2.
Sells, offers for sale, pawns or uses as security for a loan
any item on which the manufacturer's original serial number or other
distinguishing owner-applied number or mark has been destroyed, removed,
covered, concealed, altered or defaced; or
3.
Buys, receives as security for a loan or in pawn, or in any
manner receives or has in his/her possession any item on which the
manufacturer's original serial number or other distinguishing owner-applied
number or mark has been destroyed, removed, covered, concealed, altered
or defaced.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
A.
A person commits the offense of stealing leased or rented property
if, with the intent to deprive the owner thereof, such person:
1.
Purposefully fails to return leased or rented personal property
to the place and within the time specified in an agreement in writing
providing for the leasing or renting of such personal property;
2.
Conceals or aids or abets the concealment of the property from
the owner;
3.
Sells, encumbers, conveys, pawns, loans, abandons or gives away
the leased or rented property or any part thereof, without the written
consent of the lessor, or without informing the person to whom the
property is transferred to, that the property is subject to a lease;
4.
Returns the property to the lessor at the end of the lease term,
plus any agreed upon extensions, but does not pay the lease charges
agreed upon in the written instrument, with the intent to wrongfully
deprive the lessor of the agreed upon charges.
B.
The provisions of this Section shall apply to all forms of leasing
and rental agreements including, but not limited to, contracts which
provide the consumer options to buy the leased or rented personal
property, lease-purchase agreements and rent-to-own contracts. For
the purpose of determining if a violation of this Section has occurred,
leasing contracts which provide options to buy the merchandise are
owned by the owner of the property until such time as the owner endorses
the sale and transfer of ownership of the leased property to the lessee.
C.
Evidence that a lessee used a false, fictitious, or not current name,
address, or place of employment in obtaining the property or that
a lessee fails or refuses to return the property or pay the lease
charges to the lessor within seven (7) days after written demand for
the return has been sent by certified mail, return receipt requested,
to the address the person set forth in the lease agreement, or in
the absence of the address, to the person's last known place of residence,
shall be evidence of intent to violate the provisions of this Section,
except that if a motor vehicle has not been returned within seventy-two
(72) hours after the expiration of the lease or rental agreement,
such failure to return the motor vehicle shall be prima facie evidence
of the intent of the offense of stealing leased or rented property.
Where the leased or rented property is a motor vehicle, if the motor
vehicle has not been returned within seventy-two (72) hours after
the expiration of the lease or rental agreement, the lessor may notify
the local law enforcement agency of the failure of the lessee to return
such motor vehicle, and the local law enforcement agency shall cause
such motor vehicle to be put into any appropriate State and local
computer system listing stolen motor vehicles. Any Law Enforcement
Officer which stops such a motor vehicle may seize the motor vehicle
and notify the lessor that he/she may recover such motor vehicle after
it is photographed and its vehicle identification number is recorded
for evidentiary purposes. Where the leased or rented property is not
a motor vehicle, if such property has not been returned within the
seven-day period prescribed in this Subsection, the owner of the property
shall report the failure to return the property to the local law enforcement
agency, and such law enforcement agency may within five (5) days notify
the person who leased or rented the property that such person is in
violation of this Section, and that failure to immediately return
the property may subject such person to arrest for the violation.
D.
This Section shall not apply if such personal property is a vehicle
and such return is made more difficult or expensive by a defect in
such vehicle which renders such vehicle inoperable if the lessee shall
notify the lessor of the location of such vehicle and such defect
before the expiration of the lease or rental agreement or within ten
(10) days after proper notice.
E.
Any person who has leased or rented personal property of another who destroys such property so as to avoid returning it to the owner commits the offense of property damage pursuant to Section 569.100, RSMo., or Section 210.1040 of this Code in addition to being in violation of this Section.
F.
Venue shall lie in the County where the personal property was originally
rented or leased.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
A.
A person commits the offense of passing a bad check when he/she:
1.
With the purpose to defraud, makes, issues or passes a check
or other similar sight order or any other form of presentment involving
the transmission of account information for the payment of money knowing
that it will not be paid by the drawee or that there is no such drawee;
or
2.
Makes, issues or passes a check or other similar sight order
or any other form of presentment involving the transmission of account
information for the payment of money, knowing that there are insufficient
funds in or on deposit with that account for the payment of such check,
sight order or other form of presentment involving the transmission
of account information in full and all other checks, sight orders
or other forms of presentment involving the transmission of account
information upon such funds then outstanding, or that there is no
such account or no drawee and fails to pay the check or sight order
or other form of presentment involving the transmission of account
information within ten (10) days after receiving actual notice in
writing that it has not been paid because of insufficient funds or
credit with the drawee or because there is no such drawee.
B.
As used in Subsection (A)(2) of this Section, "actual notice in writing" means notice of the non-payment which is actually received by the defendant. Such notice may include the service of summons or warrant upon the defendant for the initiation of the prosecution of the check or checks which are the subject matter of the prosecution if the summons or warrant contains information of the ten-day period during which the instrument may be paid and that payment of the instrument within such ten-day period will result in dismissal of the charges. The requirement of notice shall also be satisfied for written communications which are tendered to the defendant and which the defendant refuses to accept.
[1]
Note: Under certain circumstances this offense can be a felony
under state law.
A.
MERCANTILE ESTABLISHMENT
MERCHANDISE
MERCHANT
WRONGFUL TAKING
Definitions. As used in this Section, the following
definitions shall apply:
Any mercantile place of business in, at or from which goods,
wares and merchandise are sold, offered for sale or delivered from
and sold at retail or wholesale.
All goods, wares and merchandise offered for sale or displayed
by a merchant.
Any corporation, partnership, association or person who is
engaged in the business of selling goods, wares and merchandise in
a mercantile establishment.
Includes stealing of merchandise or money and any other wrongful
appropriation of merchandise or money.
B.
Any merchant, his/her agent or employee, who has reasonable grounds
or probable cause to believe that a person has committed or is committing
a wrongful taking of merchandise or money from a mercantile establishment,
may detain such person in a reasonable manner and for a reasonable
length of time for the purpose of investigating whether there has
been a wrongful taking of such merchandise or money. Any such reasonable
detention shall not constitute an unlawful arrest or detention, nor
shall it render the merchant, his/her agent or employee criminally
or civilly liable to the person so detained.
C.
Any person willfully concealing unpurchased merchandise of any mercantile establishment, either on the premises or outside the premises of such establishment, shall be presumed to have so concealed such merchandise with the intention of committing a wrongful taking of such merchandise within the meaning of Subsection (A), and the finding of such unpurchased merchandise concealed upon the person or among the belongings of such person shall be evidence of reasonable grounds and probable cause for the detention in a reasonable manner and for a reasonable length of time of such person by a merchant, his/her agent or employee in order that recovery of such merchandise may be effected, and any such reasonable detention shall not be deemed to be unlawful nor render such merchant, his/her agent or employee criminally or civilly liable.
A.
Every purchaser or collector of, or dealer in, junk, scrap metal
or any secondhand property shall keep a register containing a written
or electronic record for each purchase or trade in which each type
of metal subject to the provisions of this Section is obtained for
value. There shall be a separate record for each transaction involving
any:
1.
Copper, brass or bronze;
2.
Aluminum wire, cable, pipe, tubing, bar, ingot, rod, fitting
or fastener;
3.
Material containing copper or aluminum that is knowingly used
for farming purposes as farming is defined in Section 350.010, RSMo.;
whatever may be the condition or length of such metal; or
4.
Catalytic converter.
B.
The record required by this Section shall contain the following data:
1.
A copy of the driver's license or photo identification issued
by the State or by the United States Government or agency thereof
to the person from whom the material is obtained;
2.
The current address, gender, birth date, and a photograph of the person from whom the material is obtained if not included or are different from the identification required in Subsection (B)(1) of this Subsection;
3.
The date, time and place of the transaction;
4.
The license plate number of the vehicle used by the seller during
the transaction;
5.
A full description of the metal, including the weight and purchase
price.
C.
The records required under this Section shall be maintained for a
minimum of twenty-four (24) months from when such material is obtained
and shall be available for inspection by any Law Enforcement Officer.
D.
Anyone convicted of violating this Section shall be guilty of an
ordinance violation.
E.
This Section shall not apply to any of the following transactions:
1.
Any transaction for which the total amount paid for all regulated
scrap metal purchased or sold does not exceed fifty dollars ($50.00),
unless the scrap metal is a catalytic converter;
2.
Any transaction for which the seller, including a farm or farmer,
has an existing business relationship with the scrap metal dealer
and is known to the scrap metal dealer making the purchase to be an
established business or political subdivision that operates a business
with a fixed location that can be reasonably expected to generate
regulated scrap metal and can be reasonably identified as such a business;
or
A.
No scrap metal dealer shall knowingly purchase or possess a metal
beer keg, whether damaged or undamaged, or any reasonably recognizable
part thereof, on any premises that the dealer uses to buy, sell, store,
shred, melt, cut or otherwise alter scrap metal except when the purchase
is from the brewer or its authorized representative. For purposes
of this Section, "keg" shall have the same meaning as in Section 311.082,
RSMo.
B.
Anyone who is found guilty of, or pleads guilty to, violating this
Section shall be guilty of an ordinance violation punishable only
by fine. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to preclude a
person violating this Section from also being prosecuted for any applicable
criminal offense.
A.
No scrap yard shall purchase any metal that can be identified as
belonging to a public or private cemetery, political subdivision,
telecommunications provider, cable provider, wireless service or other
communications-related provider, electrical cooperative, water utility,
municipal utility or utility regulated under Chapters 386 or 393,
RSMo., including bleachers, guardrails, signs, street and traffic
lights or signals, and manhole cover or covers, whether broken or
unbroken, from anyone other than the cemetery or monument owner, political
subdivision, telecommunications provider, cable provider, wireless
service or other communications-related provider, electrical cooperative,
water utility, municipal utility, utility regulated under Chapter
386 or 393, RSMo., or manufacturer of the metal or item described
in this Section unless such person is authorized in writing by the
cemetery or monument owner, political subdivision, telecommunications
provider, cable provider, wireless service or other communications-related
provider, electrical cooperative, water utility, municipal utility,
utility regulated under Chapter 386 or 393, RSMo., or manufacturer
to sell the metal.
B.
Anyone convicted of violating this Section shall be guilty of an
ordinance violation.
A.
Any scrap metal dealer paying out an amount that is five hundred
dollars ($500.00) or more shall make such payment by issuing a prenumbered
check drawn on a regular bank account in the name of the licensed
scrap metal dealer and with such check made payable to the person
documented as the seller in accordance with this Section, or by using
a system for automated cash or electronic payment distribution which
photographs or videotapes the payment recipient and identifies the
payment with a distinct transaction in the register maintained in
accordance with Chapter 407, RSMo.
B.
Any scrap metal dealer that purchases scrap metal from a seller and
pays in the form of cash is required to obtain a copy of the seller's
driver's license or non-driver's license if the metal is copper or
a catalytic converter. This Section shall not apply to any transaction
for which the seller has an existing business relationship with the
scrap metal dealer and is known to the scrap metal dealer making the
purchase to be an established business or political subdivision that
operates a business with a fixed location that can be reasonably expected
to generate regulated scrap metal and can be reasonably identified
as such a business.
A.
A
person commits the ordinance violation of commercial bribery:
1.
If he/she solicits, accepts or agrees to accept any benefit as consideration
for knowingly violating or agreeing to violate a duty of fidelity
to which he/she is subject as:
a.
Agent or employee of another;
b.
Trustee, guardian or other fiduciary;
c.
Lawyer, physician, accountant, appraiser or other professional adviser
or informant;
d.
Officer, director, partner, manager or other participant in the direction
of the affairs of an incorporated or unincorporated association; or
e.
Arbitrator or other purportedly disinterested adjudicator or referee.
2.
If as a person who holds himself/herself out to the public as being
engaged in the business of making disinterested selection, appraisal
or criticism of commodities or services, he/she solicits, accepts
or agrees to accept any benefit to influence his/her selection, appraisal
or criticism.
[1]
State Law Reference — Similar provisions, §570.150,
RSMo.
A.
A
person commits the ordinance violation of issuing a false instrument
or certificate when, being authorized by law to take proof or acknowledgment
of any instrument which by law may be recorded or being authorized
by law to make or issue official certificates or other official written
instruments, he/she issues such an instrument or certificate or makes
the same with the purpose that it be issued knowing:
[1]
State Law Reference — Similar provisions, §570.110,
RSMo.
