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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20851 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 r ORDINANCE NO. 6,1Q45'5 AN ORDINANCE of the City of Port Angeles establishing the offense of Criminal Trespass and penalties therefor. THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PORT ANGELES DO ORDAIN as follows: Section 1. Definitions. The following definitions apply in this ordinance: (a) "Premises" includes any building, dwelling, or any real property; (b) "Enter." The word "enter" when constituting an element or part of a crime, shall include the entrance of the person, or the insertion of any part of his body, or any instrument or weapon held in his hand and used or intended to be used to threaten or intimidate the person or to detach or remove property; (c) "Enters or remains unlawfully." A person "enters or remains unlawfully" in or upon premises when he is not licensed, invited, or otherwise privileged to so enter or remain. The license or privilege to enter or remain in a building which is only partly open to the public is not a license or privilege to enter or remain in that part of a building which is not open to the public. The person who enters or remains upon unimproved and apparently unused land, which is neither fenced nor otherwise enclosed in a manner to exclude intruders, does so with license and privilege unless notice against trespass is personally communicated to him by the owner of the land or some other authorized person, or unless notice is given by posting in a conspicuous manner. (d) "Building ", in addition to its ordinary meaning, includes any dwelling, fenced area, vehicle, railway car, cargo container, or any other structure used for lodging of persons or for carrying on business therein, or for the use, sale or deposit of goods; each unit of a building consisting of two or more units separately secured or occupied is a separate building. • 1 2 3 • 4 5 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 28 27 28 29 30 31 32 Section 2. Criminal Trespass in the First Degree. A person is guilty of criminal trespass in the first degree if he knowingly enters or remains unlawfully in a building. A. Criminal Trespass in the First Degree is a gross mis- demeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed Five Hundred ($500) Dollars or six (6) months in jail, or both such fine and imprison- ment. Section 3. Criminal Trespass in the Second Degree. A person is guilty of criminal trespass in the second degree if he knowingly enters or remains unlawfully in or upon premises of an- other under circumstances not constituting criminal trespass in the first degree. A. Criminal Trespass in the Second Degree is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of Five Hundred ($500) Dollars or ninety (90) days in jail, or both such fine and imprisonment. Section 4. Criminal Trespass /Defenses. In any prosecution under Section 2 and 3 of this ordinance, it is a defense that: (a) A building involved in an offense under Section 2 was abandoned; or (b) Premises were at the time open to members of the public and the actor complied with all lawful conditions imposed on access to or remaining in the premises; or (c) The actor reasonably believed that the owner of the premises, or other persons empowered to license access thereto, would have licensed him to enter or remain. PASSED by the City Council of the City of Port Angeles at a regular meeting of the Council held on the % % day of June, 1980. 1 2 3 • 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 a 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 ATTEST: Marian C. Parrish, City Clerk APPROVED AS TO FORM: Craig? L. Miller, City Attorney UBLISHED : a' /9 k� June 16, 1980 MEMORANDUM TO: City Council /Manager FROM: City Attorney RE: Proposed Trespass Ordinance The proposed ordinance establising the offense of a trespass in the City of Port Angeles, a copy of which is attached, is proposed for your consideration due to several factors: (1) "Trespass" is an appropriate charge in a large number of situations encountered by the police department which occur fairly frequently. Trespass is appropriate in those instances in which patrons of restaurant and other commercial premises have been asked to leave the premises, and have refused to do so. Trespass is appropriate when persons are found upon public facilities when those facilities are otherwise closed. (2) This offense is currently existant through the state criminal code, Title 9A, RCW, and the police department is writing these charges. However, because there is no city ordinance on the. subject, the charges must be written in District Court. This results in prosecution in that court rather than in Municipal Court, which means that any fines levied are paid to the County and State rather than to the City. The language of the ordinance before you, with only minor, im- material exceptions, is taken from the state statute. g L. ller CLM:pr attac