(a) Definitions.
(1) "Place of Public Accommodation" means any lodging house, restaurant, eating house, barbershop, public conveyance by air, land or water, theater, store, or other place for the sale of merchandise or food products, or any other place of public accommodation or amusement where the accommodation, advantages, facilities, or privileges thereof are available to the public; or a private club which has more than two hundred (200) members, provides regular meal service, and regularly receives payments for dues, fees, use of space, facilities, services, meals or beverages, directly or indirectly from or on behalf of nonmembers for the furtherance of trade or business.
(b) Unlawful Discriminatory Public Accommodation Practices. It shall be an Unlawful Discriminatory Public Accommodation Practice and a violation of this Chapter:
(1) For any proprietor or his or her employee, keeper, or manager of a Place of Public Accommodation to deny any individual, except for a reason applicable alike to all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or ancestry, disability, military status, sexual orientation, or gender identity, the full enjoyment of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, or privileges thereof.
(2) For any proprietor or his or her employee, keeper, or manager of a Place of Public Accommodation to publish, circulate, issue, display, post or mail, either directly or indirectly, any printed or written communication, notice or advertisement to the effect that any of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, goods, products, services and privileges of any such place shall be refused, withheld or denied to any individual on account of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or ancestry, disability, military status, sexual orientation, or gender identity or that such an individual is unwelcome, objectionable, or not acceptable, desired or solicited.
(3) For any person, whether or not included in subsections (a) and (b) hereof, to aid, incite, compel, coerce, or participate in the doing of any act declared to be an Unlawful Discriminatory Public Accommodation Practice under this Section.
(c) Processing of Complaints.
(1) Allegations of unlawful Discriminatory Public Accommodation Practices shall be investigated by the Kent City Police Department.
(d) Conciliation.
(1) The assigned police officer shall make a determination as to whether there is probable cause to believe that a violation of this chapter has occurred based upon the complaint and any additional information requested from the complainant. If the investigating police officer determines that there is not probable cause to believe that a violation of this chapter has occurred, the officer shall inform the complainant of that decision. If the officer determines that there is probable cause to believe that a violation of this chapter has occurred, the officer shall draft a criminal complaint and give it to the City Prosecutor.
(2) The City Prosecutor shall serve, or cause to be served, in person, or by certified mail, a copy of the complaint on the person alleged to have violated the provisions of this chapter (hereinafter referred to as "respondent"). The respondent may file with the Prosecutor an answer to the complaint. The Administrator shall also notify the complainant and respondent of the time, place and date of a conciliation conference at least ten (10) days prior thereto, and both parties shall appear at the conciliation conference in person or by an agent with authority to legally bind them in any agreed resolution;
(3) The City Prosecutor shall attempt to resolve the complaint by methods of conference, conciliation and persuasion with all interested parties and such representatives as the parties may choose to assist them. Conciliation conferences shall be informal and nothing said or done during such conferences shall be made public unless the parties agree thereto in writing. If the matter gets resolved through the conciliation process, the complaint shall not be pursued through the courts. Should the matter not be resolved, the criminal complaint shall be filed with the Portage County Municipal Court for resolution.
(d) Penalty.
(1) Whoever is convicted of violating Section 537.21(b) shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree for a first offense, and subject to a maximum fine of up to two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) and up to a maximum of thirty (30) days in jail, or both. Conviction for a second or subsequent offense for a violation of Section 537.21(b) within two (2) years shall be a misdemeanor of the first degree for which the penalty shall be a fine of up to one thousand dollars ($1,000.00), or imprisonment for not more than one hundred eighty (180) days, or both.
(Ord. 2017-60. Passed 7-26-17.)