Article 19.040 Offenses Against Property

Any person seventeen (17) years of age or over who violates this section is subject to a penalty as provided in Section 1.08, restitution to the injured party, and the costs of prosecution.

Any person twelve (12) years of age to sixteen (16) years of age shall be subject to a forfeiture not to exceed fifty dollars ($50.00) and any other applicable penalty provided by Wisconsin Statutes.

Victim remedies. Any person or entity injured by a violation of this section by a minor child shall be advised of the rights and remedies available under Section 895.035, Wis. Stats.

§ 19.042 Littering.

Littering prohibited. No person shall throw any glass, refuse or waste, filth or other litter upon the streets, alleys, highways, public parks or other property of the Village of Belleville, or upon property within the Village owned by the school district or any private person, or upon the surface of any body of water within the Village.

Litter from conduct of commercial enterprise.

Scope. The provisions of this subsection shall apply to all sales, promotions and other commercial ventures that result in litter being deposited on any street, alley or other public way.

Litter to be cleaned up. Any person, firm, corporation or association carrying on an enterprise that results in litter being deposited on any street, alley or other public way shall clean up the same within twelve (12) hours of the time the same is deposited. If any such litter is subject to being blown about, it shall be picked up immediately. If any such litter is likely to attract animals or vermin, such litter shall be picked up immediately.

(c)

Litter picked up at litterer's expense. If any person, firm, corporation or association fails to pick up any litter as required by Section 19.042(2)(b) within the time specified, the Village shall arrange to have the same picked up by Village crews or by private enterprise. The entire expense of picking up such litter, together with an additional charge of twenty percent (20%) for administrative expenses, shall be charged to the person, firm, corporation or association that did the littering. If such sum is not promptly paid, steps shall be taken, with the advice of the Village Attorney's office, to collect the same. This charge shall be in addition to any forfeiture or other penalty for violation of this section.

Depositing of materials prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any person to deposit, cause or permit to be deposited, placed or parked any vegetation, grass, leaves, foliage, earth, sand, gravel, water, snow, ice, debris, waste material, foreign substance, construction materials, equipment or object upon any street, sidewalk or public property without authorization of the Village Board or Director of Public Works pursuant to the provisions of this Code, or upon any private property without the consent of the owner or lessee of the property. Any person who deposits or causes or permits to be deposited, placed or parked any such materials, equipment or objects upon any street, sidewalk or property shall be responsible to properly mark or barricade the area to prevent a safety hazard.

Handbills.

Scattering prohibited. It shall be unlawful to deliver any handbills or advertising material to any premises in the Village except by being handed to the recipient, placed on the porch, stoop or entranceway of the building or firmly affixed to a building to prevent any such articles from being blown about, becoming scattered or in any way causing litter.

§ 19.043 Abandoned refrigerators or containers.

Papers in public places prohibited. It shall be unlawful to leave any handbills, advertising material or newspapers unattended in any street, alley, public building or other public place.

No person shall leave or permit to remain outside of any dwelling, building or other structure or within any unoccupied or abandoned building, dwelling or other structure under his or her control in a place accessible to children any abandoned, unattended or discarded icebox, refrigerator or other container which has an airtight door or lid, snap lock or other locking device which may not be released from the inside without first removing said door or lid, snap lock or other locking device from said icebox, refrigerator or container, unless such container is displayed for sale on the premises of the owner or his or her agent and is securely locked or fastened.

§ 19.044 Theft of library material.

Possession without consent prohibited. Whoever intentionally takes and carries away, transfers, conceals or retains possession of any library material without the consent of a library official, agent or employee and with intent to deprive the library of possession of the material may be subject to a forfeiture as provided by the general penalty provisions of Section 1.08 of this Code. The failure to return library material after its proper return date, after written notice from the library, shall be deemed to be theft. Notice shall be considered given when written notice is mailed to the last known address of the person with the overdue material; the notice date shall be the date of mailing.

Concealment. The concealment of library material beyond the last station for borrowing library material in a library is evidence of intent to deprive the library of possession of the material. The discovery of library material which has not been borrowed in accordance with the library's procedures or taken with consent of a library official, agent or employee and which is concealed upon the person or among the belongings of another is evidence of intentional concealment on the part of the person so concealing the material.

Detention based on probable cause. An official or adult employee or agent of a library who has probable cause for believing that a person has violated this section in his or her presence may detain the person in a reasonable manner for a reasonable length of time to deliver the person to a law enforcement officer or to the person's parent or guardian in the case of a minor. The detained person shall be promptly informed of the purpose of the detention and be permitted to make telephone calls but shall not be interrogated or searched against his or her will before the arrival of a law enforcement officer who may conduct a lawful interrogation of the accused person. Compliance with this section entitles the official, agent or employee effecting the detention to the same defense in any action as is available to a peace officer making an arrest in the line of duty.

Damaging material prohibited. No person shall mar, deface or in any other way damage or mutilate any book, periodical, pamphlet, picture or other article or property belonging to or in charge of the library. Any person convicted of violating this subsection shall be subject to the penalties as set forth in Section 1.08.

(5)

Return demanded. No person shall fail, on demand, to return any book, periodical, pamphlet, picture or other articles or property belonging to or in charge of the public library according to the rules or regulations duly made and adopted by the Library Board, and no person shall remove from the library any book, periodical, pamphlet, picture or other articles or property without first having it charged as provided by such rules and regulations. Any person convicted of violating any provision of this subsection shall be subject to the penalties as set forth in Section 1.08.

§ 19.045 Damage to public property.

Damaging public property. No person shall climb any tree or pluck any flowers or fruit, wild or cultivated, or break, cut down, trample upon, remove, or in any manner injure or deface, write upon, defile or ill use any tree, shrub, flower, flowerbed, turf, fountain, ornament, statue, building, fence, apparatus, bench, table, official notice, sign, bridge, structure or other property within any park or parkway, or in any way injure, damage or deface any public building, sidewalk or other public property in the Village of Belleville.

Breaking of streetlamps or windows. No person shall break glass in any streetlamps or windows of any building owned or occupied by the Village.

Damaging fire hydrants and water mains. No person shall, without the authority of Village authorities, operate any valve connected with the street or water supply mains, or open any fire hydrant connected with the water distribution system, except for the purpose of extinguishing a fire. No person shall injure or impair the use of any water main or fire hydrant.

§ 19.046 Retail theft.

Whoever intentionally alters indicia of price or value of merchandise or takes and carries away, transfers, conceals or retains possession of merchandise held for resale by a merchant without consent and with intent to deprive the merchant permanently of possession or the full purchase price may be penalized as provided in Section 19.046(4).

The intentional concealment of unpurchased merchandise which continues from one (1) floor to another or beyond the last station for receiving payments in a merchant's store is evidence of intent to deprive the merchant permanently of possession of such merchandise without paying the purchase price thereof. The discovery of unpurchased merchandise concealed upon the person or among the belongings of another is evidence of intentional concealment on the part of the person so concealing such goods.

A merchant or merchant's adult employee who has probable cause for believing that a person has violated this section in his or her presence may detain such person in a reasonable manner for a reasonable length of time to deliver him to a peace officer, or to his or her parent or guardian if a minor. The detained person must be promptly informed of the purpose for the detention and may make phone calls, but he or she shall not be interrogated or searched against his or her will before the arrival of a law enforcement officer who may conduct a lawful interrogation of the accused person. Compliance with this subsection entitles the merchant or his or her employee effecting the detention to the same defense in any action as is available to a peace officer making an arrest in the line of duty.

If the value of the merchandise does not exceed twenty-five hundred dollars ($2,500.00), any person violating this section shall forfeit not more than two hundred dollars ($200.00). If the value of the merchandise exceeds twenty-five hundred dollars ($2,500.00), this section shall not apply, and the matter shall be referred to the District Attorney for criminal prosecution.

§ 19.047 Issuance of worthless checks.

Whoever issues any check or other order for the payment of money less than twenty-five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) which, at the time of issuance, he or she intends shall not be paid is guilty of a violation of this section.

Any of the following is prima facie evidence that the person at the time he or she issued the check or other order for payment of money intended it should not be paid:

Proof that, at the time of issuance, the person did not have an account with the drawee.

Proof that, at the time of issuance, the person did not have sufficient funds or credit with the drawee and that the person failed within five (5) days after receiving notice of nonpayment or dishonor to pay the check or other order.

(c)

Proof that, when presentment was made within a reasonable time, the person did not have sufficient funds or credit with the drawee and the person failed within five (5) days after receiving notice of nonpayment or dishonor to pay the check or other order.

This section does not apply to a postdated check or to a check given in past consideration, except a payroll check.

§ 19.048 Trespassing.

Trespass to land. No person shall enter or remain on any land after having been notified by the owner or occupant not to remain on the premises.

Trespass to dwelling. No person shall intentionally enter the dwelling of another without the consent of some person lawfully upon the premises, under circumstances tending to create or provoke a breach of the peace.

§ 19.049 Theft.

Acts. Whoever does any of the following may be penalized as provided in Section 1.08 of this Code:

Intentionally takes and carries away, uses, transfers, conceals or retains possession of movable property of another without his or her consent and with intent to deprive the owner permanently of possession of such property.