CHAPTER 614

AN ACT to amend and reenact §§ 59-153, 59-154 and 59-155 of the Code of
Virginia, relating to the sale and purchase of second-hand metals, and
to amend the Code of Virginia by adding new sections numbered
59-155.1, 59-155.2 and 59-155.8, relating to the sale and purchase of
second-hand copper and aluminum metals, and providing a penalty
for certain violations.

(S 290]

Approved March 29, 1958

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia as follows:

1. That §§ 59-153, 59-154 and 59-155 of the Code of Virginia be amend-
ed and reenacted, and that the Code of Virginia be amended by adding new
sections numbered 59-155.1, 59-155.2 and 59-155.3 as follows:

§ 59-153. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation
to barter, purchase, exchange, buy or accept from any person whomso-
ever, except plumbers, the owner of buildings from which the material is
taken, railroad, coal mining, industrial, manufacturing and public utility
companies, or the authorized agents of such companies, lawful owners and
junk dealers, licensed in this State, any second-hand steel, copper, copper
wire, aluminum, aluminum wire, brass, brass bearings or fittings, electric
light or gas fixtures, locks or other builders hardware, plumbing fixtures,
bell or bell fixtures, lead or brass water pipes or any part of such fixtures
or pipes, or any wire, cable, lead, solder, copper, iron or brass used by or
belonging to a railroad, telephone, telegraph, coal mining, industrial, manu-
facturing or public utility company; provided that this section shall not
apply to any person, firm or corporation which shall barter, purchase, ex-
change, buy or accept any second-hand grooved or figure-eight copper
trolley wire, bare or insulated heavy stranded copper or aluminum feeder
wire, high voltage copper or aluminum transmission wire, or bare or tn-
ee mining machine copper cables, but § 59-155.1 shall be applicable
thereto.

§ 59-154. Any person buying, at public or private sale, any such
second-hand articles as are mentioned in § 59-158, except those excepted tn
said section, shall take from the seller a properly dated written receipt or
bill of sale signed by such seller which shall therein state specifically the
seller’s address, business, social security number, vehicle license number,
and place of residence. If a seller of such articles be not personally known
to the buyer or if the seller be unable to write his name, such seller shall pro-
duce an adult witness personally known to the buyer to identify the seller
and also to sign such receipt or bill of sale as witness, the latter also stating
therein his full name, occupation and place of residence. Such receipt or
bill of sale shall specifically set forth, by accurate description giving the
character, kind, quality, weight, length or size, and other detailed descrip-
tion sufficient to accurately identify the same, each of such articles so
purchased and shall be retained by the buyer at his place of business for
a period of six months after such purchase.

§ 59-155. Any person violating any of the provisions of * §§ 59-153
and 59-154 shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

§ 59-155.1. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to
barter, purchase, exchange, buy or accept from any person whomsoever,
except the manufacturer thereof or his authorized agent, railroad, coal
mining, industrial, manufacturing and public utility companies, or the
authorized agents of such companies, governmental agencies, and licensed
junk dealers, licensed scrap metal dealers, licensed electrical contractors
and licensed merchants, any second-hand grooved or figure-eight copper
trolley wire, bare or insulated heavy stranded copper or aluminum feeder
wire, high voltage copper or aluminum transmission wire, or bare or in-
sulated mining machine copper cables.

§ 59-155.2. Any person, firm or corporation which shall barter, pur-
chase, exchange, buy or accept any of the articles mentioned in § 59-155.1,
shall comply with the provisions of § 59-154 and shall, in addition, tag each
lot of said articles with the name of the seller and the date of receipt and
shall retain each such lot in his possession so tagged for thirty days in such
manner that its separate identity shall be preserved; provided that the
requirements of this section for tagging said articles and retaining them
in possession shall not be applicable if the receipt or bill of sale required
by § 59-154 shall contain an authorization naming the agent who delivers
the articles and signed by an officer, or by the proprietor, of the manu-
facturer, or coal mining, industrial, manufacturing, public utility com-
pany, governmental agency, licensed junk dealer, licensed scrap metal
dealer, licensed electrical contractor or licensed merchant, giving such
authorization.

§ 59-155.8. Any person violating any of the provisions of §§ 59-155.1 or
59-155.2 shall be confined in the penitentiary not less than one year nor
more than two years, or in the discretion of the court or the jury trying
the case, shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars nor more than one
thousand dollars, or confined in jail for any term not exceeding twelve
months, or both. Possession of any such second-hand articles in violation
of ad of the provisions of said sections shall be prima facie evidence of
guilt.