Stanton Municipal Code Ch. 9.48 Graffiti

The city council of the city finds and declares that graffiti on public or private property creates a condition tending to reduce the value of such property, promoting blight and deterioration of surrounding property inviting further vandalism and loss of pride in affected neighborhoods and loss of business to neighboring commercial enterprises.

(Prior code § 9.52.010; Ord. 536 § 2, 1980; Ord. 721 § 2, 1991; Ord. 973 § 2, 2010; Ord. 1095 § 6, 2019)

For the purposes of this chapter, "graffiti" means any unauthorized etching, spraying of paint, or marking of paint, ink, chalk, dye or other similar substances depicting letters, numbers, words, symbols, figures, designs, or insignia on public or private buildings, structures, vehicles, fences, walls, signs, sidewalks, streets or other places.

(Prior code § 9.52.020; Ord. 536 § 2, 1980; Ord. 721 § 3, 1991; Ord. 973 § 2, 2010; Ord. 1095 § 6, 2019)

A. No person shall place graffiti upon any public or private buildings, structures, vehicles, fences, walls, signs, sidewalks, streets or other places within the city.

B. No person owning or otherwise in control of any buildings, structures, vehicles, fences, walls, signs, sidewalks, streets or other places within the city shall permit or allow any graffiti to be placed upon or remain on such property when the graffiti is visible from the street or other public or private property, for a period in excess of that described in this chapter for notice and removal of graffiti.

(Ord. 721 § 4, 1991; Ord. 973 § 2, 2010; Ord. 1095 § 6, 2019)

Graffiti may be removed by any of the following methods:

A. Any person who applies graffiti within the city shall have the duty to remove the same within twenty-four hours after notice by the city or the public or private owner of the property involved. The failure of any person to so remove the graffiti shall constitute an additional violation of this chapter. Where graffiti is applied by juveniles, the parent or parents shall be responsible for such removal or for the payment thereof.

B. Whenever the public safety director, public works director, community development director, or code enforcement supervisor, or their designated representative, determines that graffiti is located upon any public or private buildings, structures, vehicles, fences, walls, signs, sidewalks, streets or other places within the city, so as to be capable of being viewed by a person utilizing any public right-of-way in the city, the city is authorized to provide for the removal of the graffiti at the city's sole expense, without reimbursement from the property owner upon whose property the graffiti has been applied, upon the following conditions:

1. In removing the graffiti, the painting or repair of a more extensive area than necessary to remove the graffiti shall not be authorized.

2. When a building, structure, vehicle, fence, wall, sign, sidewalk, or street is owned by a public entity other than the city, the removal of the graffiti may be authorized only after securing the consent of the public entity which owns the building, structure, vehicle, fence, wall, sign, sidewalk, or street.

3. Where a building, structure, vehicle, fence, wall, sign, sidewalk, or street is privately owned, the removal of the graffiti by city forces, or by a private contractor under the direction of the city, may be authorized only after securing the consent of the owner or person having legal control over the property.

4. The city reserves the right to recover city costs and expenses pursuant to Section 9.48.050 of this chapter, Penal Code Section 594, Civil Code Sections 731 and 1714.1, and Government Code Section 38771 et seq., and Welfare and Institutions Code Section 742.10 et seq., from any person who has willfully damaged property in a manner described within Section 9.48.030 of this chapter.

C. Graffiti located on privately owned buildings, structures, vehicles, fences, walls, signs, sidewalks, or streets within the city, so as to be capable of being viewed by a person utilizing any public right-of-way in the city, may be removed by the city as a public nuisance, at the owner's expense, pursuant to the following provisions:

1. Whenever the public safety director or his or her designated representative is apprised of the presence of graffiti located on privately owned buildings, structures, vehicles, fences, walls, signs, sidewalks, or streets on privately owned real property within the city, the director or designated representative may cause a written notice to be served upon the owner of the affected premises as such owner's name and address appear on the last equalized assessment rolls, by depositing a copy of the notice with the U.S. Postal Service enclosed in a sealed envelope and with the postage thereon fully prepaid. The notice shall be registered or certified and addressed to the owner at the last known address of the owner, and if there is no known address, then in care of the property address. The service is complete at the time of such deposit. "Owner," as used in this chapter, means any person in possession as well as any person having or claiming to have any legal or equitable interest in the premises as described by a preliminary title search from any accredited title company. The failure of any person to receive such notice shall not affect the validity of any proceeding hereunder. The property owner shall have seven days after the date appearing on the notice to remove the graffiti or be subject to city removal of the graffiti and assessment of the costs of such removal as a lien on the subject property;

2. The notice shall be substantially in the following form:

The service of this notice shall be made on the day the notice is dated and by affidavit filed with the city clerk;

3. If any objections are submitted to the public safety director or his or her designated representative within seven days after the date appearing on the notice of intent to remove graffiti, the director shall schedule and hold a hearing before the city council on the matter. The city council's decision on the appeal shall be deemed a final order and may be judicially reviewed pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.6;

4. Upon failure of persons to comply with the notice by the designated date, or such continued date thereafter as the public safety director or his or her designated representative approves, then the director is authorized and directed to cause the graffiti to be abated by city forces or private contract, and the city or its private contractor is expressly authorized to enter upon the premises for such purposes. All reasonable efforts to minimize damage from such entry shall be taken by the city, and any paint used to obliterate graffiti shall be as close as practicable to background color(s);

5. The cost of abatement by the city shall be recovered pursuant to Sections 9.16.110 and 9.16.120 of this code.

(Ord. 721 § 5, 1991; Ord. 789 § 25, 1997; Ord. 973 § 2, 2010; Ord. 1095 § 6, 2019)

A. When the disposition of a criminal case or a proceeding pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code Section 602 determines that a minor or other person in that case is responsible for creating, causing or committing the graffiti which was abated summarily by the city, that same person shall be liable for all abatement and related costs incurred by the city. These costs shall include, but are not limited to, court costs, attorneys' fees, costs of removal of the graffiti or other inscribed material, costs of repair and replacement of defaced property, and the law enforcement costs incurred by the city in the identification and apprehension of the minor or other person responsible for the graffiti or other inscribed material on publicly or privately owned permanent real or personal property within the city, as prescribed within Government Code Sections 38772 through 38773.6 and 53069.3.

1. The determination of responsibility shall be presumed by any confession, admission, guilty plea, or plea of nolo contendere to any violation of Penal Code Section 594, 594.3, 640.5, 640.6, or 640.7.

2. In the case of a minor, responsibility shall be determined upon a conviction by final judgment or by the minor being made a ward of the Juvenile Court pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code Section 602 by reason of the commission of any act prohibited under Penal Code Section 594, 594.3, 640.5, 640.6, or 640.7.

B. The city may recover all city funds used to remove graffiti, repair or replace graffiti damaged real or personal property within the city by making the expense of abatement of the nuisance, as defined by Government Code Section 38772, a lien against property of the minor or other person and a personal obligation against the minor or other person pursuant to Government Code Section 38773.2 or 38773.6. The parent(s) or guardian(s) having custody and control of the minor shall be jointly and severally liable with the minor pursuant to Government Code Sections 38772, 38773.2 and 38773.6. The graffiti nuisance abatement lien shall be created as follows:

1. The city shall give notice of intent to record a graffiti nuisance abatement lien to the minor or other person prior to recordation of a lien on the parcel of land owned by the minor or other person responsible for creating the graffiti nuisance. If appropriate, the city shall also give notice of intent to record a graffiti nuisance abatement lien to the parent or guardian having custody of the minor responsible for creating the graffiti nuisance prior to recordation of a lien on the parcel of land owned by the parent or guardian. Any such notice of intent to record a graffiti nuisance abatement lien shall be served by personal service in the same manner as a civil action in accordance with the Code of Civil Procedure Section 415.10. If the owner of record, after diligent search cannot be found, the notice may be served by posting a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place upon the property for a period of ten days and publication thereof in a newspaper of general circulation published in the county in which the property is located pursuant to Government Code Section 6062.

2. A graffiti nuisance abatement lien shall be recorded in the county recorder's office in the county in which the parcel of land is located and from the date of recording shall have the force, effect, and priority of a judgment lien.

3. A graffiti nuisance abatement lien authorized by this section shall specify the amount of the lien; the name of the agency on whose behalf the lien is imposed; the date of the abatement order; the street address, legal description, and assessor's parcel number of the parcel on which the lien is imposed; and the name and address of the recorded owner of the parcel.

4. If the lien is discharged, released, or satisfied through payment or foreclosure, notice of the discharge containing the information specified in subsection (B)(3) shall be recorded by the governmental agency. A graffiti nuisance abatement lien and the release of the lien shall be indexed in the grantor-grantee index.

5. A graffiti nuisance abatement lien may be satisfied through foreclosure in an action brought by the city.

6. The city may recover from the property owner any costs incurred regarding the processing and recording of the lien and providing notice to the property owner as part of its foreclosure action to enforce the lien.

C. As an alternate to the graffiti nuisance abatement lien, the city may recover its costs, as delineated above, as a special assessment against the parcel of land owned by the minor or other person responsible for creating the graffiti or by the parent or guardian having custody and control of the minor responsible for creating the graffiti. The assessment may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary municipal taxes are collected and shall be subject to the same penalties and the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as provided for ordinary municipal taxes pursuant to Government Code Section 38773.6.

D. Second or Subsequent Criminal Judgment. Upon the entry of a second or subsequent civil or criminal judgment within a two-year period finding that a person described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (d) of Section 38772 is responsible for the defacement of property of another by graffiti or other inscribed material, the court may order damages in an amount treble the costs of abatement pursuant to Government Code Section 38773.7.

(Ord. 973 § 2, 2010; Ord. 1095 § 6, 2019)

The city council may, by resolution, establish a reward for information leading to the identification, apprehension and conviction of any person who places graffiti upon any public or private property in the city. The resolution may require that the convicted offender reimburse the city for any reward paid and place responsibility for reimbursement upon the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) of any minor so convicted.

(Ord. 721 § 6, 1991; Ord. 973 § 2, 2010; Ord. 1095 § 6, 2019)

Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to prevent the city from commencing a civil or criminal proceeding to abate a public nuisance, or from pursuing any other means available to it under provisions of applicable ordinances or state law to correct hazards or deficiencies in real property, in addition to or as alternatives to the proceedings set forth in this chapter.

(Ord. 721 § 7, 1991; Ord. 973 § 2, 2010; Ord. 1095 § 6, 2019)