A. Prohibited: Any person who, with intent to injure or defraud any other person, shall injure, alter, obstruct, or prevent the action of any meter provided for the purpose of measuring or registering the quantity of electrical current consumed by or at any burner, orifice or place or supplied to any lamp, motor, machine or appliance, or shall cause or procure or aid the injuring or altering of any such meter, or prevention of its action, or shall make or cause to be made with any electrical conductor of any kind any connection so as to conduct or supply electrical current to any place, lamp, motor, machine or appliance from or in which such electrical current may be used or utilized, without passing through or being registered by a meter, or without the consent or acquiescence of any person furnishing or transmitting such electrical current through such electrical conductor, or shall willfully or intentionally injure, molest or destroy any of the poles, lines, wires, meters or other appliances or the property or material belonging to any such person furnishing or transmitting such electrical current, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
B. Prima Facie Evidence of Guilt: In all prosecutions under subsection A of this section, proof that any of the acts therein forbidden were done on or about the premises owned or occupied by the defendant charged with the commission of such offense or that the defendant received the benefit of such electric current on account of the commission of such acts, shall be prima facie evidence of the guilt of such defendant. (Ord. 746, 8-18-2022)