NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1969 SESSION

CHAPTER 1224

HOUSE BILL 1337

AN ACT TO REDUCE THE PUNISHMENT OF VARIOUS GENERAL MISDEMEANORS CARRIED IN CHAPTER 14 OF THE GENERAL STATUTES OF NORTH CAROLINA TO A PUNISHMENT OF FINE NOT TO EXCEED $500, IMPRISONMENT FOR NOT MORE THAN SIX MONTHS, OR BOTH.

The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact:

Section 1.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting the period at the end of the Section and by adding at that point the following: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-35, 14-47, 14-48, 14-113, 14-115, 14-133, 14-143, 14-144, 14-194, 14-199, 14-223, 14-224, 14‑314, 14-319, 14-343, 14-345, 14-365, 14-380.1, 14-380.2, 14-383, and 14-431.

Sec. 2.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting the period at the end of the first sentence of the Section and by adding at that point the following: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-112, 14-132, 14-164, and 14-360.

Sec. 3.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting at the end of the Section the punctuation and words following the word "misdemeanor" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-82, 14-108, 14-109, 14-110, 14-111, 14-158, 14-163, 14‑186, 14-225, 14-272, 14-273, 14-275, 14-281, 14-313, 14-361, 14-362, 14-368, 14-401.1, 14-415, and 14-422.

Sec. 4.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting at the end of the first sentence of the Section or subsection in question the punctuation and words following the word "misdemeanor" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00). imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-40, 14-78.1, 14-111.1. 14-111.2, 14-114, 14-193, 14-346(b), 14-346.2, and 14-363.

Sec. 5.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting at the end of the last sentence of the Section the punctuation and words following the word "misdemeanor" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-86, 14-118.3, 14-286, 14-287, 14-393, 14-397, and 14-401.2.

Sec. 6.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting at the end of the Section or subsection in question the words and punctuation following the word "misdemeanor" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-113.6, 14-227.3, 14-235, 14‑284.1(e), 14-327, 14-353, 14-408, and 14-424.

Sec. 7.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting at the end of the first sentence of the Section or subsection in question the words and punctuation following the word "misdemeanor" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14‑118.2(b), 14-269, and 14-314.

Sec. 8.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by deleting at the end of the last sentence of the Section the words and punctuation following the word "misdemeanor" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-238, 14-344, 14-369, 14-386, 14-400, 14‑401.3, 14-401.6 and 14-401.10.

Sec. 9.  The sections of the General Statutes of North Carolina listed below in this Section are each amended by adding a sentence at the end of the Section as follows: "Any person violating any provision of this Section shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." This Section applies to G.S. 14-105, 14-157, 14-184, 14-190, 14-200, 14-270, 14-332, 14-348, 14‑366, and 14-389.

Sec. 10.  G.S. 14-107 is amended to delete the period at the end of the first sentence of the third paragraph and to add: punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both." It is intended that this amendment be made to G.S. 14-407 as it appears in the 1967 Supplement to 1953 Recompiled Volume 1B of the General Statutes, or to G.S. 14-107 as it may be rewritten by any general or local legislation considered by the 1969 Session of the General Assembly, especially including House Bill 888.

Sec. 11.  G.S. 14-129.1 is amended by deleting the words "and shall be fined or imprisoned in the discretion of the court" from the second sentence of that Section and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both".

Sec. 12.  G.S. 14-134 is amended by deleting the words and punctuation "and shall be fined or imprisoned in the discretion of the court, or both such fine and imprisonment" from the first sentence of that Section and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six months, or both".

Sec. 13.  G.S. 14-142 is amended by deleting the words and punctuation "be fined or imprisoned, or both, at the discretion of the court." and by adding in lieu thereof: "be punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both."

Sec. 14.  G.S. 14-160 as it appears in 1953 Recompiled Volume 1B of the General Statutes is rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 14-160.  Wilful and wanton injury to personal property; punishments. (a) If any person shall wantonly and wilfully injure the personal property of another he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months or both.

"(b)      Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a), if any person shall wantonly and wilfully injure the personal property of another, causing damage in an amount in excess of two hundred dollars ($200.00), he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable as provided in Sec. 14-3(a).

"(c)       This Section applies to injuries to personal property without regard to whether the property is destroyed or not."

Sec. 15.  Article 24 of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by deleting the words and punctuation "and punished as hereinafter provided." from the end of G.S. 14‑166, 14-167, and 14-168 and by adding in lieu thereof at the end of each section: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six months, or both." Article 24 is further amended by deleting the word "Any" at the beginning of G.S. 14-169 and by adding in lieu thereof: "Except as otherwise provided, any".

Sec. 16.  G.S. 14-251 is amended to delete from the first sentence the punctuation and words following the word "misdemeanor" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) and not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both such fine and imprisonment."

Sec. 17.  G.S. 14-331 is amended by deleting from the second clause of the Section, following the word "misdemeanor", the punctuation and words ", and upon conviction shall be punished by fine or imprisonment in the discretion of the court" and by adding in lieu thereof: "punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both."

Sec. 18.  G.S. 14-339 is amended by deleting the words and punctuation "punished by imprisonment, at the discretion of the court, not to exceed twelve (12) months." from the end of the Section and by adding at that point: "guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both."

Sec. 19.  G.S. 14-346.1 is amended to rewrite the second paragraph of the Section as follows:

"Any person who violates any provision of this Section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both."

Sec. 20.  G.S. 14-401.5 as it appears in the 1967 Supplement to 1953 Recompiled Volume 1B of the General Statutes is amended by deleting on line six of the Section the words "one year" and by adding in lieu thereof the words "six (6) months".

Sec. 21.  G.S. 14-336 is amended by deleting the words and punctuation "may be fined or imprisoned, or both, in the discretion of the court:" from the proviso in the first paragraph of that Section and by adding in lieu therof: "shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both. The classes are:"

Sec. 22.  G.S. 14-188 is amended by deleting the period at the end of the caption and by adding in lieu thereof the punctuation and word "; punishment."; by designating the text of the Section as it is presently carried in 1953 Recompiled Volume 1B of the General Statutes as subsection (a); and by adding a new subsection (b) as follows:

"(b)      On a prosecution in any court for keeping a disorderly house or a bawdy house, or permitting a house to be used as a bawdy house or used in such a way to make it disorderly or a common nuisance, the offense shall constitute a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both."

Sec. 23.  All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed.

Sec. 24.  This Act shall take effect on October 1, 1969.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 1st day of July, 1969.