Any graffiti or other matters set forth in this section which shall be placed on any real, public, private, or personal property within the city in violation of this section shall be considered a nuisance and, as a nuisance, shall be subject to abatement as provided herein. It shall be unlawful for any person holding a city retail business license to sell, give away, deliver, transfer or offer to sell any spray paint, permanent markers or etching materials to any minor.
(A) Definitions. For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ETCHING MATERIALS. Any acid or like substance or device used to cut, bite, corrode or engrave on metal, glass, plastic, concrete, tile or stone.
GRAFFITI. Any sign, symbol, marking, drawing, name, initial, work, diagram, sketch, picture or letter placed upon real or personal property located within the city, without the owner’s express, written permission.
LEGAL GUARDIAN. A person appointed guardian, or given custody, of a minor by a Circuit Court of this state, but does not include a person appointed guardian, or given custody of a minor under the Illinois Juvenile Court Act, being ILCS Ch. 705, Act 405, §§ 1 et seq.
MINOR. A person who has attained nine years of age but who has not reached 18 years of age.
PARENT. The father or mother of any child and includes any adoptive parent.
PERMANENT MARKER. Any ink markers and other markers containing fluid which is not water soluble and that have a point, brush, applicator or other writing surface of three-eighths of an inch or greater.
PERSON. Any individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.
PROPERTY. Any real estate, including improvements thereon, and tangible personal property.
RETAIL. Sales other than those for the purpose of resale or for use by manufacturers, contractors, trades, railroads, public service corporations and institutions, or for the supplying of branch or general establishments from a central depot or store, and shall not include the sale at retail of secondhand or used goods, wares or commodities.
SPRAY PAINT. Spray paint, aerosol propelled paint, etching materials, permanent markers and all other devices designed to expel paint by means of compressed gas.
(B) Prohibition of graffiti.
(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to place graffiti upon the real, personal, public or private property of another located within the city.
(2) It shall be unlawful for the owner of any real, public, private, or personal property located in the city to directly or indirectly place or give permission to place within public view, any sign, symbol, marking, drawing, name, initial, work, diagram, sketch, picture or letter (hereinafter referred to as “such matters”) upon the property if the placement incites violence by referring to gang or criminal activity, depicts or expresses obscenity by referring to sexual activity or contains defamatory material about a public or private person.
(3) It shall be unlawful for any person to possess, while in any public building or facility, or while on private property, any of the following materials with the intent to use the material(s) to violate divisions (B)(1) and/or (2) above: spray paint containers, paint, ink, marking pens containing non-water soluble fluid, brushes, applicators or materials for marking, scratching or etching.
(4) Any owner of real or public, private, or personal property upon which the sign, symbol, marking, drawing, name, initial, work, diagram, sketch, picture or letter has been placed in violation of divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section shall, upon notice by the city being delivered and/or mailed to the owner, remove all matters within seven days of the earliest date of notice. Failure to have all matters removed within seven days of the earliest date of notice shall constitute permission by the owner to the city, its employees and/or contractors, to enter onto public or private real estate property to remove such matters, with the cost of the removal to be paid by the owner of the real estate property on which the matters are located. Additionally, the owner of the real estate property on which the matters are located who fails to remove the matters within seven days of the earliest notice given by the city shall be in violation of this section and shall be fined not less than $50 nor more than $500 for each offense, and each day the failure shall continue shall be considered a separate offense and fines shall be assessed accordingly.
(5) Penalty for violating division (B)(1) shall be a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $500. The offender may also be ordered by the court, in addition to fines, to pay restitution to the property owner for the costs of restoring the property to its condition before the graffiti was applied.
(6) Penalty for violating division (B)(2) shall consist of a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $500 for each offense and a separate offense shall be deemed committed each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues.
(7) Penalty for violating division (B)(3) shall be a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $500.
(8) Public service work, including but not limited to cleaning graffiti and such matters at locations within the city, may be required by the court for person(s) found violating divisions (B)(1), (2) or (3), in addition to or in lieu of fines or penalties in division (B)(5), (6) or (7).
(9) Any person found violating divisions (B)(1), (2) or (3), who is also found to have been a member of or candidate for gang membership at the time the offense is committed, shall be subject to a fine of not less than $500 nor more than $1,000 in addition to other non-monetary penalties in this section.
(10) The parent or legal guardian of a minor defendant, who resides with the parent or legal guardian, shall be liable for any fine or condition of restitution or reparation imposed by a court upon a minor for violation of this section, provided that the minor has not fully paid the fine or fully made restitution or reparation within the time ordered by the court, and further provided that the parent or legal guardian has been served with summons or notice to appear in the original cause and all proceedings thereafter as provided by law.
(C) Retail sale of spray paint prohibited.
(1) In addition to the foregoing, no person shall sell, give away, deliver, transfer or offer to sell any spray paint, etching device or permanent marker to any person under the age of 21 years.
(2) For purposes of preventing the violation of this section, any person may refuse to sell spray paint to any person who cannot produce adequate written evidence of identity and of the fact that he or she is over 21.
(3) Any person convicted of violating this section shall be fined not less than $500 for the first offense and no less than $750 and the possible revocation of its city business license for the second and each subsequent offense.
(Ord. 02-11, passed 4-9-2002; Ord. 07-18, passed 4-10-2007; Ord. 09-37, passed 10-27-2009)
Statutory reference:
Parental Responsibility Law, see ILCS Ch. 740, Act 115, §§ 1 et seq.