[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the City of
Hyattsville . Amendments noted where applicable.]
It shall be unlawful for any person to throw or propel or to
cause to be thrown or propelled by any means any bill, dodger, pamphlet
or other similar material at or into any vehicle upon any of the streets
of the City.
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons to assemble or
congregate with others on the public streets or in or upon any public
building:
A. With intent to provoke a breach of the peace.
B. Whereby a breach of the peace may be occasioned.
C. So as to constitute a nuisance.
D. So as to impede the travel and free passageway of vehicles or other
persons.
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons to refuse to
move on and disperse when ordered so to do by any police officer.
A. On occasions of fires, accidents, wrecks and parades or wherever
large numbers of people collect within the streets or any public park
of the City, police officers in attendance or the Fire Marshal or
Fire Chief or fire officer in command may employ and use rope and
attach the same to any tree, tree box or any other available hold
or employ the citizens in attendance to form a chain by the interlocking
of hands or may direct persons in attendance to remain beyond a designated
distance for the purpose of affording a clearing for the assistance
of firemen, police and other authorized persons engaged in preserving
the peace and maintaining and protecting life and property.
B. No person shall enter such space or interfere in any manner with
such roping or break through such barricade or pass under or through
any police or fire line so established and beyond the distance designated
by the person in charge thereof unless duly authorized by the officer
in command in such emergency, provided that this provision shall not
apply to firemen engaged in protecting life and property or to the
police officers or such other persons as may be authorized to be within
such clearing.
C. The officer authorized herein to establish and maintain the lines
provided for shall be the senior police officer present, if there
is one present, or, in the event that no police are present, the Fire
Chief or Fire Marshal or senior fire officer.
When he shall deem it necessary, it shall be the duty of the senior police officer on duty or other duly authorized police officer to go to the scene of any fire, accident, wreck, parade or gathering, as referred to in §
87-4, in the City for the purpose of maintaining order and to enforce the provisions of §
87-4.
It shall be unlawful for any person in the City, in any street
or alley, in any public place or in or upon any vehicle commonly used
for the transportation of passengers or in and about any depot, platform
or waiting station to drink any intoxicating liquor of any kind or
act in a disorderly manner to the disturbance of the public peace.
It shall be unlawful for any person to enter upon the land or
premises of any other person, whether such person is the owner or
lessee of such land or premises, and willfully act in a disorderly
manner by making loud and unseemly noises or by profanely cursing
or swearing or using obscene language while thereon.
It shall be unlawful for any person to keep or maintain a disorderly
house or knowingly to let or lease a house or part thereof to be so
kept in the City.
It shall be unlawful for any person to cause or permit the storage
of unused or abandoned iceboxes, refrigerators and other containers
with airtight doors or with locks that cannot be opened from the inside
of the container in any place accessible to children unless the doors
or locks are removed.
It shall be unlawful for any person to expose his person indecently
or conduct himself in an indecent or immoral manner or use obscene
language upon the streets or alleys of the City or so near thereto
as to disturb the public.
It shall be unlawful for any person to break, damage, mutilate
or carry away any City property.
It shall be unlawful for any person to tamper in any way with
the locks, doors or windows of the Municipal Building in the City.
[Added 11-20-1978 by
HB No. 9-78; amended 4-6-1992 by
HB 1-92; 12-21-1992 by HB No.
6-92]
A. As used in this section the term "public or private meeting facility"
shall mean any place where an excess of 25 people congregate, including
but not limited to places of worship, schools, veteran's halls, auditoriums,
restaurants, rallies and community gatherings.
B. It shall be unlawful for an owner, any of his agents, a tenant or
any person managing or having control of any premises used, in whole
or in part, for residential purposes to allow such premises to be
used for illegal, indecent, disorderly, dangerous or any other purposes
which may be harmful to the health, peace or well-being of the immediate
neighborhood after receiving notice thereof.
C. It shall be unlawful for an owner, any of his agents, or any person
managing or having control of any premises used, in whole or in part,
as a public or private meeting facility to allow such premises to
be used so as to constitute a nuisance.
D. It shall be unlawful for an owner, any of his agents, or any person
managing or having control of any premises used, in whole or in part,
as a public or private meeting facility to allow such premises to
be used for illegal, indecent, disorderly, dangerous, unsanitary,
or any other purposes which may be harmful to the health, peace or
well-being of the immediate neighborhood after receiving notice thereof.
E. Notice shall issue, only upon receipt by the City of a written complaint
that alleges violation of this section, and adoption by the Mayor
and Council of a resolution finding that such a violation exists and
that a notice should be issued.
F. Such notice shall be in writing, in a form prescribed by the Mayor
and City Council and shall require the person cited therein, upon
receipt of such notice, to immediately cause the cessation of the
use or uses set forth in such notice.
G. If the owner, agent, or person managing or having control of any
premises shall fail, neglect or refuse to comply with notice to cease
the use or uses set forth therein, the City shall be authorized to
obtain equitable or legal relief, including, but not limited to, temporary
and/or permanent injunctions, from any court of competent jurisdiction
to abate the nuisance through appropriate means.
H. Costs incurred under paragraph 87-13(F), including reasonable attorneys
fees, court costs, and any damages shall be charged to the owner of
the premises involved and if not paid within 30 days from the date
of invoice, shall become a lien upon the property and shall bear interest
at the rate of 10% per annum from the date when the same became due
and payable.
I. If any provision of this section or the applicability thereof to
any person, premises or public or private meeting facility or circumstances
is held invalid, the remainder of this section and the applicability
thereof to other persons, premises or private meeting facilities shall
not be affected thereby.
It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge any air rifle
or other weapon discharging missiles by air pressure in the City.
It shall be unlawful for any person, except a duly authorized
police officer, to discharge any cannon, gun, pistol or other firearm
in the City.
It shall be unlawful for any person to throw or propel or cause
to be thrown or propelled any object against or into any vehicle in
the City, and it shall be unlawful for any person to throw or propel
or cause to be thrown or propelled any dangerous missile in the City.
No person shall tamper with, touch, press or in anywise contact
the operating mechanism constructed for pedestrian use in such manner
as to cause any automatic signal device erected in the City for the
control of traffic to display a signal to interfere with, obstruct
or stop traffic, unless such person has a bona fide intention in so
operating such automatic signal device for the purpose of bringing
vehicular traffic to a stop to provide safe passage for pedestrians
across and over the streets of the City.
It shall be unlawful for any person, other than the Judges and
Clerks, two challengers, the candidates for office and City officials,
to remain in general voting places at any City election after the
close of the polls, except employees of the building.
[Amended 7-16-2001 by
HB No. 01-03; 12-3-2007 by HO-2007-14; 12-7-2009 by HO-2009-07]
Violations of this article shall be punishable as a municipal infraction as provided in Chapter
20 of this Code. The fine for any single initial violation shall be $100, and the fine for each repeat of that offense shall be $200.
[Adopted 12-7-2009 by
HO-2009-07]
A. The provisions of the Prince George's County Code and all amendments
thereto, shall govern the erection, location, placement, maintenance,
size, quality and display of all signs in the City in public rights-of-way,
except for the local requirements in this article.
B. Nothing in this article shall apply to the City or to federal, state,
county governmental agencies or public utilities exercising their
legal authority over public rights-of-way or their property interest
and easements in such public rights-of-way.
A. Except as otherwise provided in this Code, no person in a public
right-of-way in the City shall paint, mark, write on, post or otherwise
affix any handbill, object, or sign to or upon any ground, sidewalk,
crosswalk, curb, curbstone, street lamppost, hydrant, tree, shrub,
tree stake or guard, electric light, power or telephone pole or wire
appurtenance thereof, or any other fixture of the fire alarm or police
system, or upon any lighting system, public bridge, street sign or
traffic sign.
The City Council shall have the authority to allow placement
of signs in the public rights-of-way as it deems in the interest of
public safety and the public good.
A. Real estate directional signs may be placed temporarily from noon
Friday through noon Monday in public rights-of-way behind the curb
lane but are not to be placed within town parks. The signs shall have
a maximum area of no more than 1.5 square feet. No more than two directional
signs may be in the same public right-of-way per property unless additional
signs are specifically authorized by the City Administrator upon a
showing of hardship or need to the applicant. The directional signs
must be made of rigid material, such as metal, cardboard, or plastic,
and be attached to a metal or wooden stake. Signs are not to be attached
to trees, utility, street sign or traffic sign poles.
B. Temporary sale signs are allowed as outlined and permitted in Chapter
99.
A. Presumption. Unless rebutted by competent evidence, any handbill,
sign or object in the public right-of-way shall be presumed to be
owned by and attached by a person whose business name, business address,
business telephone number or trademark or servicemark is contained
on the face of the sign or object.
B. Removal. Any sign placed in the public right-of-way in violation
of the Article shall be deemed abandoned by its owner at the time
the sign was placed and shall be subject to removal by the City without
any prior notice.
C. Notice and removal. Whenever the City or a designated representative
determines that a sign is unsafe or illegal, instead of immediate
removal, the City may (in writing) order that the sign be made safe
or removed. The order shall be complied with by the person owning
or using the sign within five days after notice is sent. If the unsafe
or illegal sign is not removed or maintained in accordance with the
order, the City shall have the sign removed. The cost of removal shall
be borne by the owner/user of the sign, which cost shall be a lien
on the property of the owner/user in the City.
In the event of an emergency situation (when there is an immediate
danger to public safety), the unsafe sign shall be made safe or removed
without any delay or written order.
D. Entrance features. The maintenance of an entrance feature, including
gateway signs and associated landscaping, shall be the responsibility
of a homeowner's association or any other entity or person owning
the abutting property, any entrance which has not been maintained
in a safe and attractive manner may, for the purpose of this section,
be deemed to be an unsafe sign.
A. Violations of this article by any person, firm or corporation is
declared to be a municipal infraction, the penalty for violation shall
be $50 for each initial offense and $100 for each repeat offense.
Each handbill, object or sign and each day that a violation is permitted
to exist shall constitute a separate offense.
B. The City or its designated representative shall have the authority
to order that an illegal handbill, object or sign be removed or made
to conform to the requirements of this article. The order shall be
complied with by the owner or user of the sign within five days or
the cost of removal shall be a lien on the property of the owner of
the handbill, object or sign.