An Act to amend and reenact § 46.1-299, as amended, of the Code of Virginia, relating to devices signalling intention to turn or stop and rules therefor.
Volume 1968 Law 99
Volume | 1916 |
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Law Number | 463 |
Subjects |
Law Body
Chap. 463.—An ACT to enjoin and abate houses of lewdness, assignation,
and -prostitution; to declare the same to be nuisances; to enjoin the
person or persons who conduct or maintain the same and the owner
or agent of any building used for such purpose. (H. B. 177.)
Approved March 22, 1916.
1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
whoever shall knowingly erect, establish, continue, maintain.
use, own, occupy, or lease any building, erection, or place used
for the purpose of lewdness, assignation, or prostitution in the
State is guilty of a nuisance, and the building, erection, or place.
the ground itself, in or upon which such lewdness, assignation.
or prostitution is conducted, permitted, or carried on, continued.
or exists, and the furniture, fixtures, musical instruments and
contents are also declared a nuisance, and shall be enjoined and
abated as hereinaiter provided.
2. That whenever a nuisance is kept, maintained, or exists
as defined in this act the Commonwealth’s attorney or the attor-
ney general of the State, or any responsible citizen of the State,
may maintain a suit in equity in the name of the State, upon the
relation of such attorney for the Commonwealth, attorney gen-
eral, or citizen, to perpetually enjoin said nuisance, the person
or persons conducting or maintaining the same, and the owner
or agent of the building or ground upon which said nuisance
exists. In such suit the court, or a judge in vacation, shall, upon
the presentation of a bill therefor alleging that the nuisance
complained of exists, and sworn to by two reputable citizens,
allow a temporary writ otf injunction, without bond, if it shall
be made to appear to the satisfaction of the court or judge by
evidence in the form of affidavits, depositions, oral testimony,
or otherwise, as the complainant may elect, unless the court or
judge by previous order shall have directed the form and man-
ner in which the evidence shall be presented. Three days’
notice, in writing, shall be given the defendant of the hearing
of the application, and if then continued at his instance the writ
as prayed shall be granted as a matter of course. When an
injunction has been granted it shall be binding on the defen-
dant throughout the State until dissolved by the court and any
violation of the provisions of injunction shall be a contempt as
hereinafter provided. |
3. That the suit when ready for hearing shall be tried at the
first term of court, unless good cause for a continuance shall
be shown, and in such suit oral evidence given in court of the
general reputation of the place shall be admissible for the pur-
pose of proving or tending to prove the existence of said nuis-
ance. If the complaint is filed by a citizen it shall not be dis-
missed before final hearing, except upon a sworn statement made
by the complainant and his attorney, setting forth the reasons
why the action should be dismissed, and the dismissal approved
by the attorney for the Commonwealth, or the attorney general
of the State, in writing or in open court. In any case if the
court is of the opinion that the action ought not to be dismissed,
it may direct the attorney of the Commonwealth to prosecute
said action to judgment; and if the action is continued more
than one term of court, any citizen, or the Commonwealth at
torney may be substituted for the complaining party and prose
cute said action to judgment. If the action is brought by a citi
zen, and the court finds there was no reasonable ground or caus
for said action, the costs may be taxed to such citizen.
4. That in case of the violation of any injunction grante
under the provisions of this act, the court, or, in vacation, a judg
thereof, may summarily try and punish the offender. The pr
ceeding shall be commenced by filing with the clerk of the cou
an information, under oath, setting out the alleged facts cons’
tuting such violation, upon which the court or judge shall cay
a warrant to issue, under which the defendant shall be arrest,
The trial may be had upon affidavits, or either party may at
any stage of the proceeding demand the production and oral
examination of the witnesses. A party found guilty of con-
tempt under the provisions of this section, shall be punished by
a fine of not less than one hundred dollars nor more than one
thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in jail not less than three
months nor more than six months, or in the discretion of the
court by both fine and imprisonment.
5. If the existence of the nuisance be established in a suit
in equity as provided in this act, or in a criminal proceeding,
an order of abatement shall be entered as a part of the judg-
ment in the case, which order shall direct the removal from
the building or place of all fixtures, furniture, musical instru-
ments, or movable property used in conducting the nuisance,
and shall direct the sale thereof in the manner provided for the
sale of chattels under execution, and shall decree the effectual
closing of the building or place against its use for any purpose,
and so keeping it closed for a period of one year, unless sooner
released. If any person shall break and enter or use a building,
erection, or place so directed to be closed he shall be punished
as for contempt, as provided in the preceding section.
6. The proceeds of the sale of the personal property, as
provided in the preceding section, shall be applied to the pay-
ment of the costs of the suit and abatement, including a reason-
able attorney fee to be decreed to the attorney, as the court shall
think just, and the balance, if any, shall be paid to the defendent.
7. If the owner appears and pays ail costs of the proceed-
ings and files a bond, with sureties to be approved by the clerk,
in the full value of the property, to be ascertained by the court,
or by the judge, in vacation, conditioned that he will imme
diately abate said nuisance and prevent the same from being
established or kept within a period of one year thereafter, the
court, or, in vacation, the judge, may, if satisfied of his good
faith, order the premises closed under the order of abatement
to be delivered to said owner and said order of abatement can-
celled so far as the same may relate to said property; and if
the proceeding be a suit in equity and said bond be given, and
costs therein paid before judgment and order of abatement, the
action shall be thereby abated as to said building only. But
the release of the property under the provisions of this section
shall not release it from Judgment, lien, penalty, or liability to
which it may be subject by law.
8. On motion of the attorney for the Commonwealth or
other attorney representing the prosecution for violation of this
statute, the court may grant immunity to any witness called
to testify in behalf of the prosecution.
9. All acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this act are
hereby repealed.