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ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 36 OF THE DULUTH CITY CODE, PROHIBITING THE SALE OR PAWN OF STOLEN PROPERTY, AMENDING SECTIONS 36-12, 36-14, 36-15, 36-21, 36-22, 36-24, AND 36-25.
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CITY PROPOSAL:
The city of Duluth does ordain:
Section 1. That Section 36-12 of the Duluth City Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 36-12. Prohibited conduct.
A pawnbroker, and any clerk, agent or employee of a pawn-broker, shall not:
(a) Possess stolen goods;
(ba) Make any false entry in the records of pawn trans-actions;
(cb) Falsify, obliterate, destroy or remove from the place of business the records, books or accounts relating to the licensee’s pawn transactions;
(dc) Refuse to allow the Duluth police, the attorney general or any other duly authorized state or federal law enforcement officer to inspect the pawn records or any pawn goods in the person’s actual or constructive possession during the ordinary hours of business or at other reasonable times;
(ed) Fail to maintain a record of each pawn transaction for three years;
(fe) Accept a pledge, or purchase property from, a person under the age of 18 years, nor from an intoxicated person;
(gf) Make any agreement requiring the personal liability of a pledgor or seller, or waiving any provision of this Chapter;
(hg) Fail to return pledged goods to a pledgor or seller, or provide compensation as set forth in Minnesota Statutes Section 325J.09, or its successor, upon payment of the full amount due the pawnbroker unless either the date of redemption is more than 60 days past the date of the pawn transaction, renewal or extension and the pawnbroker has sold the pledged goods pursuant to Minnesota Statutes Section 325J.06, or its successor, or the pledged goods have been taken into custody by a court or a law enforcement officer or agency;
(ih) Sell or lease, or agree to sell or lease, pledged or purchased goods back to the pledgor or seller in the same, or in a related, transaction;
(ji) Remove pledged goods from the pawnshop premises or other storage place approved by the chief of police at any time before the expiration of the redemption period pursuant to Minnesota Statutes Section 325J.06 or its successor. However:
(1) A pawnbroker is permitted to return pledged goods to the borrower at any time during the redemption period;
(2) A pawnbroker is permitted to sell the pledged goods or remove the pledged goods from the pawnshop premises or other storage at any time after the expiration of the redemption period set forth in Minnesota Statues Section 325J.06 or its successor, and;
(3) A pawnbroker who purchases goods not involving a pawn transaction is permitted to sell or remove the purchased goods from the pawnshop premises 31 days or later from the purchase transaction date.
Section 2. That Section 36-14 of the Duluth City Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 36-14. False statements and identification, other conduct prohibited.
No person shall:
(1) Misrepresent his identity to any pawnbroker nor shall any person furnish such pawnbroker with any identification not belonging to and identifying himself.
(2) Pawn, pledge, sell, assign, lease or deposit with a pawnbroker any article of property not their own, or any article of property in which another person has a security interest.
Section 3. That Section 36-15 of the Duluth City Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 36-15. Suspension and revocation of license.
(a) Any license issued pursuant to this Chapter may be suspended for up to 60 days or revoked by the chief of police for good cause. If the chief of police intends to revoke or suspend such license he shall give written notice of such intention to the licensee at least 20 days before such suspension or revocation is to begin. The licensee may then demand a hearing before the chief of police. Such demand shall be made in writing to the chief of police and must be made within ten days after the notice of revocation or suspension is received. For the purposes of this Section "good cause" shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) Conviction of licensee or any of his employees of any crime relating to the operation of a pawnbroking business;
(2) Violation by the licensee or his employees of any of the provisions of this Chapter or any other ordinance or statute relating to the operation of a pawnbroking business;
(3) Failure to record any item pawned, pledged or purchased by the licensee or his employees;
(4) Failure to submit to the police all required records;
(5) Failure to tell the truth to any police officer about any material fact about which such police officer inquires in the course of an investigation;
(6) Falsely stating any material fact on the license application;
(7) Submitting a false or incomplete record to the police; or
(8) Failure to comply with a hold or seizure order issued under this Article.
(b) Any person whose license is suspended or revoked by the chief of police may appeal such suspension or revocation to the city council. Such appeal must be made in writing within ten days of the final order of suspension or revocation of the chief of police and shall be heard at the first regularly scheduled meeting of the city council thereafter.
Section 4. That Section 36-21 of the Duluth City Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 36-21. Holding periods; police order to hold property.
(a) No precious metal dealer or agent or employee of such dealer shall sell, melt, alter, divest himself or herself of possession of, or move to a place outside the corporate limits of the city of Duluth any secondhand item containing precious metal purchased or received by him or her, except coins, until 31 days from the date of the transaction;
(b) Investigative hold. Whenever a law enforcement official from any agency notifies a licensee not to sell an item, the item must not be sold or removed from the premises. The investigative hold shall be confirmed in writing by the originating agency within 72 hours and will remain in effect for 15 days from the date of initial notification, or until the investigative order is canceled, or until an order to hold/confiscate is issued, pursuant to Section 36-21(c) or (d) of this Code, whichever comes first;
(c) Order to hold. Whenever the chief of police, or the chief’s designee, notifies a licensee not to sell an item, the item must not be sold or removed from the licensed premises until authorized to be released by the chief or the chief’s designee. The order to hold shall expire 90 days from the date it is placed unless the chief of police or the chief’s designee determines the hold is still necessary and notifies the licensee in writing;
(d) Order to confiscate. If an item is identified as stolen or evidence in a criminal case, the chief or chief’s designee may;
(1) Physically confiscate and remove it from the shop, pursuant to a written order from the chief or the chief’s designee; or
(2) Place the item on hold or extend the hold as provided in Section 36-21(c) of this Code, and leave it in the shop.
When an item is confiscated, the person doing so shall provide identification upon request of the licensee, and shall provide the licensee the name and phone number of the confiscating agency and investigator, and the case number related to the confiscation.
When an order to hold/confiscate is no longer necessary, the chief of police, or the chief’s designee, shall so notify the licensee.
The chief of police may order that any item be held beyond the time authorized in Subsection (a) above under the same conditions set forth therein. No person shall disobey such order. The chief of police shall grant a hearing to any person aggrieved by such order to contest the reasonableness of such order.
Section 5. That Section 36-22 of the Duluth City Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 36-22. Certain dealings prohibited.
No precious metal dealer shall:
(1) Buy, trade or receive any item from any person under 18 years of age, any obviously intoxicated person, or any person suffering from an obvious mental deficiency.
(2) Possess stolen property.
Section 6. That Section 36-24 of the Duluth City Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 36-24. False statements and identification, other conduct prohibited.
No person shall:
(1) Misrepresent his identity to any precious metal dealer nor shall any person furnish such precious metal dealer with any identification not belonging to and identifying himself.
(2) Pawn, pledge, sell, assign, lease or deposit with a precious metal dealer any article of property not their own, or any article of property in which another person has a security interest.
Section 7. That Section 36-25 of the Duluth City Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 36-25. Suspension and revocation of license.
(a) Any license issued pursuant to this Chapter may be suspended for up to 60 days or revoked by the chief of police for good cause. If the chief of police intends to revoke or suspend such license he shall give written notice of such intention to the licensee at least 20 days before such suspension or revocation is to begin. The licensee may then demand a hearing before the chief of police. Such demand shall be made in writing to the chief of police and must be made within ten days after the notice of revocation or suspension is received. For the purposes of this Section "good cause" shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) Conviction of licensee or any of his employees of any crime relating to the operation of the precious metal dealership;
(2) Violation by the licensee or his employees of any of the provisions of this Article or any other ordinance or statute relating to the operation of a precious metal dealership;
(3) Failure to record any item purchased or received by the licensee or his employees;
(4) Failure to submit to the police all required records;
(5) Failure to tell the truth to any police officer about any material fact about which such police officer inquires in the course of an investigation;
(6) Falsely stating any material fact on the license application;
(7) Submitting a false or incomplete record to the police; or
(8) Failure to comply with a hold or seizure order issued under this Article.
(b) Any person whose license is suspended or revoked by the chief of police may appeal such suspension or revocation to the city council. Such appeal must be made in writing within ten days of the final order of suspension or revocation by the chief of police and shall be heard at the first regularly schedul-ed meeting of the city council thereafter.
Section 8. That this ordinance shall take effect 30 days after its passage and publication.
Statement of Purpose
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: The purpose of this ordinance is to create consistency in the investigation of potential criminal activity involving stolen property that is transferred to pawnbrokers or precious metal dealers. This ordinance will also assist law enforcement in combatting crime by holding precious metal dealers to the same standards as pawnbrokers. This, in turn, will protect public safety and enhance the welfare of citizens of the community.