This chapter shall be known and may be cited
as the "Town of Brookhaven Graffiti and Defacement of Property Law."
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
BROAD-TIP MARKER
Any felt-tip marker or similar implement which has an applicator
surface of greater than one-quarter square inch.
COMMUNITY SERVICE
Any organization or program employed by the criminal courts
or judiciary to provide for appropriate alternate sentences to fine
or imprisonment.
DEFACE
To mark the face or surface of, disfigure, injure, spoil
or otherwise alter the appearance of property without the consent
and express permission of the owner or proprietor thereof, or in the
case of public property, of the person having charge, custody or control
thereof.
DEFACEMENT
Any mark or disfigurement of any face or surface that disfigures,
injures, spoils or otherwise alters the appearance of property without
the consent and express permission of the owner or proprietor thereof,
or in the case of public property, of the person having charge, custody
or control thereof.
[Added 5-24-2011 by L.L. No. 14-2011, effective 6-9-2011]
GRAFFITI
Any inscription, figure, mark or design which is written,
etched, scratched, painted, drawn or applied to property.
PROPERTY
Any property, real or personal, private or public, in whatever
phase of construction or completion, including but not limited to
buildings and appurtenances, dwellings and structures of any kind,
as well as the doors, windows, steps, railings, fencing, balconies,
stairs, balustrades, porches, halls or walls which are a part thereof,
bridges, trestles, streets, highways, sound barriers, sidewalks, statues,
monuments, utility poles, signs, trees, rocks, passenger or commercial
vehicles, or vehicles of mass transit.
No person within the Town of Brookhaven shall
deface any property with graffiti.
No person within the Town of Brookhaven shall
possess, under circumstances evincing an intent to violate any provisions
of this chapter, any aerosol paint can or broad-tip marker or any
other tool, instrument, article, substance, solution or compound designed
or commonly used to deface property with graffiti.
All persons within the Town of Brookhaven who sell or offer for sale aerosol paint cans or broad tip markers shall post conspicuous signs, containing all capital lettering not less than two inches in height on a contrasting background, summarizing the prohibitions contained in §
48-6 of this chapter and further stating "UNDER PENALTY OF LAW AND CRIMINAL PROSECUTION."
[Added 4-3-2001 by L.L. No. 5-2001,
effective 4-9-2001; amended 5-24-2011 by L.L. No. 14-2011, effective 6-9-2011]
A. Duty to
keep property free from graffiti and/or defacement. Owners and/or
tenants of all private buildings and structures marked by graffiti
or other form of defacement shall have the defacement and/or graffiti
removed.
B. Requirement of notice. The Town of Brookhaven shall serve a notice of violation upon the owner and/or tenants of the structure, which will require that all graffiti and/or defacement shall be removed and the surface finish restored in accordance with the time periods in Subsection
B(1) and
(2) below. The notice shall further provide a listing of local governmental or volunteer agencies or departments that may provide the owners and/or tenants with graffiti and/or defacement removal without cost to the owners and/or tenants.
(1) Graffiti
and/or defacement located on occupied residential structures and their
accessory structures, fences or barriers shall be removed and the
surface finish restored within 14 days of receipt of the notice of
violation.
(2) Graffiti and/or defacement located on all structures, other than those described in Subsection
B(1) above, and their accessory structures, fences or barriers shall be removed and the surface finish restored within five days of receipt of the notice of violation.
[Amended 4-3-2001 by L.L. No. 5-2001,
effective 4-9-2001; 4-16-2009 by L.L. No. 7-2009, effective 4-27-2009; 5-24-2011 by L.L. No. 14-2011, effective 6-9-2011; 8-28-2012 by L.L. No. 19-2012, effective 9-11-2012]
A. Any person who violates §§
48-4 and
48-5 of this chapter shall be punishable as follows: upon a first conviction, by a fine of $1,000 to $2,000 or by imprisonment not exceeding 15 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment; upon a second or subsequent conviction, by a fine of $2,000 to $3,000 or by imprisonment for not less than 15 days nor more than six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment. For purposes of this subsection, a second violation shall be prosecuted as a misdemeanor. In addition, any person who violates §
48-4 or
48-5 of this chapter shall be liable for the reasonable cost, as determined by the court, of restoring the defaced property to its original condition.
[Amended 6-26-2018 by L.L. No.
14-2018, effective 7-9-2018]
B. Any person who violates §
48-6A,
48-6B or
48-6C of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000 or imprisonment for one year, or both, for each violation thereof. The court may suspend any fine or imprisonment by sentencing the defendant to perform appropriate and suitable community service.
[Amended 6-26-2018 by L.L. No.
14-2018, effective 7-9-2018]
C. Any person who violates §
48-7 of this chapter shall be guilty of a violation punishable by a fine of not more than $250 and, for a second or subsequent offense, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $500, or six months' imprisonment, or both.
[Amended 6-26-2018 by L.L. No.
14-2018, effective 7-9-2018]
D. Any person who violates §
48-8 of this chapter shall be guilty of a violation punishable by a fine of not more than $150.
[Amended 6-26-2018 by L.L. No.
14-2018, effective 7-9-2018]
E. The parent or legal guardian, other than the state or local Social Services Department or foster parent, of any minor over the age of 10 and under 18 who violates any section of this chapter, with the exception of §
48-8, shall be liable for any damages and/or restoration costs that result from such violations of this chapter where it is determined by the court that the defendant has failed to, or is financially incapable of, restoring the defaced property as required by Subsection
A of this section.
If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section
or part of this chapter shall be adjudged by any court of competent
jurisdiction to be invalid or unconstitutional, such judgment shall
not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall
be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, section
or part thereof directly involved in the controversy and in which
such judgment shall have been rendered.