Oakland Municipal Code Art. I Purpose and Introductory Sections

A. The City Council finds that the increase of graffiti on public and private property creates a condition of blight within the city that can result in the deterioration of property values, business opportunities, and enjoyment of life for persons using adjacent and surrounding properties as well as the entire community.

B. The City Council further finds that the presence of graffiti is inconsistent with the City of Oakland's goals of maintaining property, preventing crime, and preserving aesthetic standards. Often, unless graffiti is quickly removed, it encourages the creation of additional graffiti on nearby buildings and structures. The increase of graffiti promotes a perception that the laws protecting public and private property can be disregarded with impunity.

C. The remedies and penalties for graffiti are currently inadequate to compensate victims of such acts and to discourage acts of graffiti.

D. The purpose and intent of the City Council, through the amending and restating this Chapter, is to protect public and private property from acts of defacement by graffiti by increasing remedies for victims of such acts and penalties for those performing such acts in order to discourage such acts and to adequately compensate the victims of the graffiti and vandalism, including private parties and the City of Oakland.

E. A further purpose of this ordinance is to adopt state statutes permitting cities to provide for additional remedies and penalties against persons committing acts of graffiti.

F. A further purpose of this ordinance is to permit the use of restorative justice in lieu of monetary or criminal penalties against graffiti offenders, when appropriate.

G. For purposes of this ordinance, graffiti does not refer to a style of art. This ordinance is intended to address the application of graffiti that does not have the prior consent of the property owner, and is a form of vandalism. It is not intended to address the content or the artistic merit of the graffiti or other art or messaging on property. Through other policies and programs and as a graffiti deterrent, the City Council may wish to encourage permissive murals or art work on properties as a means of discouraging or abating unconsented to graffiti.

(Ord. No. 13146, § 1, 1-22-2013)

As used in this Chapter, unless otherwise provided for within and except for those sections that enact state law and for which other definitions apply, the following words shall be defined as follows:

"Adhesive Stickers" means any sheet of paper, fabric, plastic or other substance or material with an adhesive backing.

"Aerosol Paint Container" means any aerosol container, regardless of the material from which it is made, which is adapted or made for the purpose of spraying paint or other substances capable of being applied on public or private property in a manner that defaces the property.

"Anti-graffiti Materials" means products or materials used to prevent the adhesion of unwanted coatings or applications or to facilitate the removal of graffiti. These products or materials are typically liquid-applied coatings or films applied over the surface to be protected, but can also include landscaping and other plantings. The term "anti-graffiti materials" also includes original products, structures or installations which are made from or which are composed of materials that prevent the adhesion of unwanted coatings or applications or which facilitate the removal of graffiti.

"Assists in Applying Graffiti" means a person who transports another for that person's applying Graffiti, assists in accessing a location upon which graffiti is applied, purchases Graffiti Implements knowing they might be used for applying Graffiti, or otherwise provides assistance in the act of applying Graffiti.

"Boat" means a boat of any kind, whether self-propelled or propelled by other means, including sailing vessels, and all other structures adapted to be navigated in water from place to place for recreational purposes or for the transportation of merchandise or persons.

"City" means City of Oakland.

"City Attorney" means the City Attorney of the City of Oakland or her or his designee.

"City Administrator" means the City Administrator of the City of Oakland or her or his designee.

"Committed" means that a person has engaged in prior acts of applying Graffiti which can be proven by prior citations, civil judgments, criminal convictions or equivalents, or proven at the proceeding in which the prior acts are alleged.

"Costs" means and includes, but is not limited to, court costs, all attorneys' fees, costs of removal of the graffiti or other inscribed materials, costs of repair and replacement of defaced property, costs of investigating the incident, and law enforcement costs, including, but not limited to police, code enforcement, public works, city attorney, or other city departments, incurred by the City in identifying and apprehending persons who create, cause or commit the vandalism in violation of this Chapter.

"Etching Cream" means any caustic cream, gel, liquid, or solution capable, by means of a chemical action, of defacing, damaging, or destroying hard surfaces in a manner similar to acid.

"Etchers" or "Etching Tools" means any sharp or pointed instrument, device or other mechanism including, but not limited to, glass etchers, metal etchers, cutting and grinding instruments, awls, chisels, glass cutters, drill bits or any other instrument that is capable of scratching or otherwise marking any surface including, but not limited to, glass, mirrors, windows, steel, aluminum, brass, tin, fiberglass, wood, plastic, concrete or any other surface.

"Graffiti" means and includes, but is not limited to, vandalism by defacing property through the writing, defacing, tagging, marring, inscribing, etching, scratching, painting or affixing of other markings on buildings, improvements, fixtures, or structures including, but not limited to, walls, fences, signs, retaining walls, driveways, walkways, sidewalks, pavement, curbs, curbstones, street lamp posts, hydrants, trees, electric light or power or telephone or telegraph or trolley wire poles, fire alarms, drinking fountains, parking meters, boats, motor vehicles, trailers, statues and sculptures, newspaper stands, or garbage receptacles without the prior consent of the owner of the property on which the surface is located, regardless of the nature of the material. "Graffiti" shall not include: 1) any sign or banner that is authorized by, and in compliance with, the applicable requirements of the Oakland Municipal Code, 2) any mural or other painting or marking on the property that is protected as a work of fine art under the California Art Reservation Act (CA Civil Code sections 987 et seq.) or as a work of visual art under the Federal Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 (17 U.S.C. sections 101 et seq.), 3) any art work consented to in advance by the property owner, and does not refer to any particular style of art.

"Graffiti Implement" means an adhesive sticker/gum label, aerosol paint container, etching cream, etching tool, marking pen, a paint or graffiti sticker, spray actuators or other similar devices that may be used to scar or to deface property.

"Graffiti Violator" means a person who applies Graffiti or who Assists in Applying Graffiti.

"Guardian" means a minor's legal guardian who has custody and control of the minor.

"Gum Label" means any material such as, but not limited to, decals, stickers, posters or labels which contain a substance commonly known as adhesive or glue, which cannot be removed from the surface in an intact condition.

"Marker pen" means any marker pen or any similar implement containing a permanent ink, paint or other pigmented liquid with a marking tip of one-half inch or more at its largest dimension.

"Minor" means any person under the age of eighteen years who has not been emancipated by the court.

"Motor Vehicle" means a passenger vehicle, truck, recreational vehicle, motorcycle, motor scooter, golf cart, or other similar self-propelled vehicle. "Motor vehicle" does not mean a motorized wheelchair, bicycle, tricycle, or quadracycle.

"Property Owner" means any person, firm, corporation, partnership or other entity, owning property either public or private, who is the record titleholder, or whose name or title appears on the last equalized assessment role with the Alameda County Clerk-Recorder's Office, or the lessee or other person having control or possession of the property.

"Registered Owner" means the last registered owner of record of a Vehicle as shown on the records of the Department of Motor Vehicles or similar state or federal agency.

"Trailer" means a vehicle designed for carrying persons or property on its own structure, which may be drawn by a motor vehicle.

"Vehicle" means a vehicle as defined in California Vehicle Code Section 670, and a motor vehicle as defined in California Vehicle Code Section 415.

(Ord. No. 13146, § 1, 1-22-2013)