[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Brigantine 12-7-1992
by Ord. No. 21-1992. Amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any person, firm or corporation other than a licensed pawnbroker
or licensed secondhand dealer having a place of business in the City of Brigantine
for purchasing, trading or dealing predominately in antiques.
Very old and authentic objects of enhanced value owing their increased
worth in the unique appeal mainly to the fortuity of survival.
Any person, firm or corporation, other than a licensed antique dealer,
pawnbroker, licensed coin dealer, licensed motor vehicle or trailer dealer
purchasing, trading or dealing in any secondhand goods whatsoever, said dealers
to be designated in the following classes as set forth below.
CLASS A DEALERA person, firm or corporation, other than a Class B or Class C secondhand dealer, engaged in the business of buying, selling, trading, exchanging or dealing in secondhand personal property of any description (other than motor vehicles).
CLASS B DEALERA person, firm or corporation primarily engaged in the sale of new merchandise and incidentally engaged in selling, trading, exchanging or dealing in secondhand goods of any description (other than motor vehicles) as the result of having received the secondhand goods in trade or by repossession or as part payment for new merchandise. No "Class B secondhand dealer" shall engage in the business of dealing in used personal property except as an incident to the sale of other new merchandise.
CLASS C DEALERA charitable organization, as defined in Chapter 50(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, which has donated to it or receives on consignment secondhand personal property (other than motor vehicles) for the purpose of resale.
Goods which have been previously owned, worn or used by another,
i.e., not new.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to engage in
the business of being a secondhand dealer, as defined in the chapter, without
first obtaining a license therefor as hereinafter provided. A separate license
shall be required for each location, place or premises used for the conduct
of the business of being a secondhand dealer. Each location, place or premises
shall be limited to a single secondhand license. The Class A licenses shall
be limited to five issues at any given time.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 250-3, License fee; expiration,
which provided that "no fee will be charged secondhand dealers," was repealed
3-24-1993 by Ord. No. 5-1993.
The license issued pursuant to this chapter shall state the name of
the person to whom issued, the place of business and the street number where
such business is located. Such license shall entitle the person receiving
it to conduct business at the location designated in the license, and such
business shall not be carried on or conducted in any other location than that
designated in or by the license. No secondhand dealer shall be permitted to
solicit upon any street or public highway of the City of Brigantine, and no
person, firm or corporation shall conduct a house-to-house canvass for the
purchase or sale of secondhand or used watches, jewelry, precious stones,
gold, silver, wrought gold or any other precious metals within the City.
Each applicant shall have three sets of fingerprints taken by the Brigantine
Police Department. Fingerprints so furnished shall become a part of the application.
In the event of a partnership, all partners and, in the event of a corporation,
the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be required to
submit the above-mentioned sets of fingerprints, which fingerprints so taken
shall be submitted to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and to such further
authorities as the Chief of Police may deem advisable for comparison and record.
A.Â
Record of purchases, sales or exchanges.
(1)Â
Every Class A secondhand dealer shall keep a tightly
bound book, not loose-leaf, with pages numbered in sequence, in which there
shall be made, at the time of the transaction, a record in English of every
article received, purchased, sold or exchanged by him or her, setting forth
the following: the name, date of birth, sex, social security number, residence,
telephone number and general description of the individual with whom the transaction
is had; the price or consideration paid or received at the time of the transaction;
the true value of the article involved; and a complete description of every
article received, sold or exchanged, giving the manufacturer's name and/or
other marks of identification appearing on said article.
(2)Â
All records made pursuant to this section shall be maintained
by the dealer at the dealer's place of business for a period of not less than
one year after the date that the property is sold or disposed of in any manner.
(3)Â
The account of each transaction shall be numbered consecutively.
(4)Â
The dealer shall securely fasten on any article purchased
or received, for which records must be kept pursuant to this section, a tag
to be prescribed by the Director of the Department of Police.
(5)Â
The dealer shall legibly write in English on the tag
the date of the purchase or receipt of the article and a number corresponding
to the property in the dealer's book.
(6)Â
The tag shall remain on the property until such time
as the property is sold or disposed of by the dealer.
(7)Â
Each dealer shall secure the name and address of the
person purchasing or otherwise acquiring any of the following items:
(a)Â
Binoculars.
(b)Â
Cameras.
(c)Â
Furs.
(d)Â
Household appliances.
(e)Â
Jewelry or other items composed of or manufactured, in
whole or significant part, of a precious metal.
(f)Â
Musical instruments.
(g)Â
Office machines and equipment.
(h)Â
Radios and television sets.
(i)Â
Watches.
(j)Â
Any item other than those listed above having a retail
sales value of $100 or more.
B.Â
Identification cards.
(1)Â
The Class A secondhand dealer shall, at the time of making
each transaction, require the seller to write his or her signature and address
along with the seller's description and verification of identity on a card
bearing the serial number of the transaction corresponding to that record
in the dealer's book. If such person is unable to write, he or she shall sign
by mark, and in such event, the dealer shall record on the signature card
such information as will identify the individual to be identified. Further,
each card will contain space for a thumbprint of the seller and will be placed
on the card at the time of the transaction.
(2)Â
The dealer shall require and inspect two types of identification
from the seller or person delivering the property.
(3)Â
The dealer shall enter all identifying numbers to the
extent contained in the identification provided by the seller or person delivering
the property.
C.Â
Reports to the Chief of Police. All Class A secondhand
dealers shall, every day before the hour of 11:00 a.m., deliver to the Chief
of Police or his or her designee, from blank forms to be prescribed, legible
and correct transcripts from their record books showing the descriptions of
every and all articles or things received by them on the business day immediately
preceding (except as to the purchase of rags, old iron and paper), together
with the amount paid therefor and a description of the person making the sale.
The Chief of Police shall have the power and authority to require such to
be done in a manner and form subject to his or her approval. Whenever the
amount to be paid by the dealer for secondhand goods does not represent their
true, fair and reasonable market value, the dealer must, simultaneously with
or before the receipt of sale, report the transaction to the Chief of Police
of the City of Brigantine or his or her designee.
A.Â
Maintenance of records.
(1)Â
Each Class B secondhand dealer shall keep at his or her
place of business a record of each transaction involving used personal property,
setting forth the following:
(a)Â
An accurate and complete description of the goods, article
or thing received in trade or part payment for other merchandise.
(b)Â
The date of receipt.
(c)Â
The name, sex, color and address of the person from whom
acquired.
(d)Â
The name and address of the person, corporation or firm
which ultimately purchases or receives the property from the dealer.
(2)Â
All records shall be maintained by the dealer at the
dealer's place of business for a period of not less than one year after the
date the property is sold or disposed of in any manner.
B.Â
Reports to the Chief of Police. All Class B secondhand
dealers shall, on the day following a transaction of secondhand goods, before
the hour of 11:00 a.m., deliver to the Chief of Police or his or her designee,
from blank forms to be prescribed, legible and correct transcripts from their
record books, showing the descriptions of every and all articles or things
received by them on the business day immediately preceding (except as to the
purchase of rags, old iron and paper), together with the amount paid therefor
and a description of the person making the sale. The Chief of Police shall
have the power and authority to require such to be done in a manner and form
subject to his or her approval. Whenever the amount to be paid by the dealer
for secondhand goods does not represent their true, fair and reasonable market
value, the dealer must, simultaneously with or before the receipt of the sale,
report the transaction to the Chief of Police of the City of Brigantine or
his or her designee.
A.Â
Prohibition as to melted or altered goods. No dealer
in secondhand goods shall purchase any piece or mass of melted precious metal,
ingot of amateur manufacture or any article with serial numbers or jeweler's
marks obliterated unless payment for the article is withheld for a period
of 24 hours prior to the transaction of the pertinent information required
under this chapter.
B.Â
Purchases from minors. No dealer in secondhand goods
shall purchase or receive any article of secondhand personal property from
a minor, that being under the age of 18 years, unless the minor's parent or
legal guardian is physically present during the transaction and presents the
identification required by the chapter.
C.Â
Melting, wrecking and remodeling. No secondhand dealer
shall take apart or melt down any jewelry, watch case or article composed
or manufactured, in all or in part, of gold, silver or platinum until he or
she shall have made a record of his or her intention to do so, along with
all other data recorded in his or her record book, and shall have reported
the same to the Chief of Police in the same manner as reports of purchase.
The articles proposed to be taken apart, melted down, wrecked or remodeled
must be kept for a period of 15 business days before such action is taken
unless the articles have been inspected by the Chief of Police or his or her
designate and written approval has been given for such melting, wrecking or
remodeling prior to the completion of the aforesaid period.
D.Â
Record inspection. The aforesaid record book and all
goods, articles or things purchased, received or kept for sale or exchange
by every secondhand dealer shall, at all reasonable times, be open to the
inspection by any duly authorized agent of the Department of Police.
E.Â
Inspection, seizure and detention of property by police.
(1)Â
It shall be the duty of every secondhand dealer and of
every person in a dealer's employ to admit to the premises during business
hours any member of the Brigantine City Police Department to examine any book
or other record on the premises, as well as the articles purchased or received,
and to take possession of any article known by the police officer or official
to be missing or to have been stolen, or where said officer or official has
probable cause to believe the article is missing or stolen.
(2)Â
It shall be a violation of the provisions of this chapter
for any licensed secondhand dealer or any agent, clerk or employee of any
such dealer to hinder or in any manner prevent any agent or member of the
Brigantine Police Department from making an inspection of the premises and
taking into possession any article or articles known or believed to have been
unlawfully taken from the rightful owner or possessor of said article or articles.
(3)Â
Upon taking possession of an article or articles, an
authorized official or police officer shall furnish the dealer with a receipt
which shall include the date, name of the official or officer taking the article,
his rank and a description of the article or articles taken.
(4)Â
Any article taken by an authorized official or police
officer from a dealer shall, as soon as possible, be delivered to the property
clerk of the Brigantine Police Department where it shall remain until such
time as ownership or the right to possession, or both, have been determined
according to law.
(5)Â
The property clerk of the Brigantine Police Department
shall notify the dealer, in writing, of any deposition of the property. The
notice shall include the date of disposition and the name of the person receiving
the property.
(6)Â
In lieu of taking possession of secondhand goods pursuant
to this chapter, a member of the Brigantine Police Department may place a
temporary detainer on the property for a period not to exceed 60 calendar
days from the date that the written notice of the detainer is issued to the
dealer.
(7)Â
During the period of detention, the property shall remain
in the custody of the dealer, and the dealer shall be prohibited from selling,
disposing of in any manner or changing the identity of the property.
(8)Â
During the period of detention, the dealer shall keep
the detained property separate and distinct from all other property in the
dealer's place of business.
F.Â
Goods to be kept without concealment for 15 business
days.
(1)Â
Every dealer in secondhand goods must keep, without concealment,
for a period of 15 business days, subject to inspection by any police officer,
all goods, wares and merchandise, except papers and rags purchased or received
from any person, before selling, shipping or otherwise disposing of the same
unless the item(s) has (have) been sooner inspected by the Chief of Police
or his or her designee and the licensee receives written approval for such
selling, shipping or disposal.
(2)Â
Property being held pursuant to this section shall be
kept in the dealer's place of business and shall be kept separate and distinct
from all other property or merchandise in the dealer's place of business.
G.Â
Storage. No secondhand dealer shall make use of any property,
private or public, not included within the licensed premises for the storage,
handling or displaying of any secondhand article, unless those premises are
duly approved and registered with the licensing authority.
H.Â
Hours of business. No Class A or Class B secondhand dealer
shall transact any business between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.
There will be no restriction as to time as to Class C secondhand dealers.
A.Â
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any
antique dealer or licensed coin dealer who deals strictly in his or her respective
specialty. Any of the aforesaid dealers who deal in any secondhand items which
are not their specialties are required to obtain licenses pursuant to this
chapter.
B.Â
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any
pawnbroker, as defined in N.J.S.A. 45:22-1. However, any pawnbroker who deals
in any secondhand items not for the purpose of pawning or making loans thereon
is required to obtain a license pursuant to this chapter and to abide by the
same.
A.Â
The Director of the Department of Police may deny, suspend
or revoke any secondhand license pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:52-2 for sufficient
cause after notice and hearing; sufficient cause is to include but not be
limited to:
(1)Â
Violation of any provision of this chapter.
(2)Â
Advertising of any kind by a dealer to purchase secondhand
goods without being licensed pursuant to this chapter.
(3)Â
Failure of any person to state fully on his or her application
for a license both his or her name and official place of business within the
City of Brigantine.
(4)Â
Conviction of an offense or crime in connection with
the operation of a secondhand dealer's business.
(5)Â
Utilization of the business for the disposal of stolen
goods.
(6)Â
Conducting the business in such a way as to make it a
menace to the health and welfare of the City.
B.Â
The secondhand dealer shall be liable and responsible
for any of the foreseeable acts or omissions of the licensee's agents, clerks
or employees.
Any person, firm or corporation violating any provision of this chapter
shall, upon conviction in the Municipal Court of the City of Brigantine, be
punished for each offense by a fine not to exceed $500.