Pennsylvania Act 1931-319 — NUISANCES, DECLARING HOUSE OF PROSTITUTION AS

Act text

NUISANCES, DECLARING HOUSE OF PROSTITUTION AS
                 Act of Jun. 23, 1931, P.L. 1178, No. 319             Cl. 68
                                  AN ACT

     Declaring buildings and parts of buildings used for purposes of
        fornication, lewdness, assignation, and prostitution to be
        nuisances; providing a method of abating same; establishing a
        method of procedure against those who use said buildings, or
        parts thereof, for such purposes; and providing penalties for
        violations of this act.

        Section 1.  Building used for fornication, etc; as nuisance
        Any building, or part of a building, used for the purpose of
     fornication, lewdness, assignation, and/or prostitution is
     hereby declared to be a common nuisance; and any person who
     maintains such a common nuisance shall be guilty of a
     misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be sentenced to
     imprisonment for not more than one year, or pay a fine not
     exceeding one thousand dollars, or both, at the discretion of
     the court. (1931, June 23, P.L. 1178, No. 319, Sec. 1.)
        Section 2.  Knowledge of unlawful use by owner
        If a person, being the owner of any building, has knowledge
     of, or reason to believe, that such building, or a part thereof,
     is used for the purposes of fornication, lewdness, assignation,
     and/or prostitution, and suffers the same to be so used, such
     building shall be subject to a lien for and may be sold to pay
     all fines and costs assessed against the person guilty of
     maintaining such nuisance for such violation of this act; and
     the total amount of any such fine and costs may be entered, by
     the filing of a certificate thereof by the clerk of the court in
     which the same was imposed in the court of common pleas of the
     county, and shall remain a lien in favor of such county until
     paid. Judgment may be obtained thereon and execution issued in
     the manner provided by law in the case of municipal liens.
     (1931, June 23, P.L. 1178, No. 319, Sec. 2.)
        Section 3.  An action to enjoin any nuisances defined in
     section one of this act may be brought, in the name of the
     Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, by the Attorney General thereof or
     by the district attorney of the county concerned.
        (3 repealed in part Apr. 28, 1978, P.L.202, No.53)
        Section 4.  Abatement of nuisance
        It shall not be necessary for the court to find the property
     involved was being unlawfully used, as aforesaid, at the time of
     the hearing, but on finding that the material allegations of the
     petition are true, the court shall order that the building nor
     any part thereof be not used for any of the purposes aforesaid.
     And upon judgment of the court ordering such nuisance to be
     abated, the court may order that the building, or any part
     thereof, shall not be occupied or used for any purpose
     whatsoever for one year thereafter, but the court may, in its
     discretion, permit it to be occupied or used if the owner
     thereof shall give bond, with sufficient surety to be approved
     by the court making the order, in the penal and liquidated sum
     of not less than one thousand dollars nor more than twenty-five
     hundred dollars, payable to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,
     and conditioned that the building, or part thereof, shall not be
     used for any of the purposes aforesaid, and that he will pay all
     fines, costs, and damages that may be assessed for any violation
     of this act upon said property. (1931, June 23, P.L. 1178, No.
     319, Sec. 4.)
        Section 5.  (5 repealed Apr. 28, 1978, P.L.202, No.53)
        Section 6.  Violation of injunction; contempt
        Any person, or any owner of such building, or any agent of
     such owner, who, after any injunction or order, as aforesaid,
     has been granted, shall use such building, or any part thereof,
     as aforesaid, or knowingly permit the same to be so used, shall
     be subject to summary punishment as for contempt of court, in
     the manner now provided by law. (1931, June 23, P.L. 1178, No.
     319, Sec. 6.)
        Section 7.  Violation of act
        Any person violating any of the provisions of this act shall
     be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be
     sentenced to imprisonment for not more than one year, or pay a
     fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or both, at the
     discretion of the court. (1931, June 23, P.L. 1178, No. 319,
     Sec. 7.)