HOUSE BILL No. 5230

 

January 22, 2014, Introduced by Reps. Cavanagh, Heise, Lamonte, Hovey-Wright, LaVoy, Lauwers, Price, Rogers, Slavens, Darany, Singh, Brinks, Haveman, Kowall, Zorn, O'Brien, Barnett, Driskell, Roberts, Haugh, Brown, Banks, McCready, Lyons, Lane, Tlaib, Irwin and Kivela and referred to the Committee on Criminal Justice.

 

     A bill to amend 1961 PA 236, entitled

 

"Revised judicature act of 1961,"

 

by amending sections 3801, 3805, 3810, 3815, 3820, 3825, and 3835

 

(MCL 600.3801, 600.3805, 600.3810, 600.3815, 600.3820, 600.3825,

 

and 600.3835), section 3801 as amended by 2012 PA 352.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 3801. (1) A building, vehicle, boat, aircraft, or place

 

is a nuisance if 1 or more of the following apply:

 

     (a) It is used for the purpose of lewdness, assignation,

 

prostitution, or gambling.

 

     (b) It is used by, or kept for the use of, prostitutes or

 

other disorderly persons.


 

     (c) It is used for the unlawful manufacture, transporting,

 

sale, keeping for sale, bartering, or furnishing of a controlled

 

substance.

 

     (d) It is used for the unlawful manufacture, transporting,

 

sale, keeping for sale, bartering, or furnishing of vinous, malt,

 

brewed, fermented, spirituous, or intoxicating liquors or mixed

 

liquors or beverages, any part of which is intoxicating.

 

     (e) It is used for conduct prohibited by section 49 of the

 

Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.49.

 

     (f) It is used for conduct prohibited by chapter LXVIIA of the

 

Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.462a to 750.462j.

 

     (g) It is used to facilitate armed violence in connection with

 

the unlawful use of a firearm or other dangerous weapon.

 

     (h) It is a dangerous building used to commit an unlawful act

 

or any other activity declared by state law or local ordinance to

 

be a public nuisance.

 

     (2) All furniture, fixtures, and contents of a building,

 

vehicle, boat, aircraft, or place described in subsection (1) and

 

all intoxicating liquors in the building, vehicle, boat, aircraft,

 

or place are also declared a nuisance.

 

     (3) All controlled substances and nuisances shall be enjoined

 

and abated as provided in this act and the court rules.

 

     (4) A person, or a servant, agent, or employee of the person,

 

who owns, leases, conducts, or maintains a building, vehicle, or

 

place described in subsection (1) is guilty of a nuisance.

 

     (5) As used in this section: , "controlled

 

     (a) "Controlled substance" means that term as defined in


 

section 7104 of the public health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.7104.

 

     (b) "Dangerous building" means a building that is a dangerous

 

building under section 139(g) of the housing law of Michigan, 1917

 

PA 167, MCL 125.539.

 

     Sec. 3805. The attorney general of the state of Michigan, or

 

the prosecuting attorney or any citizen resident of the county , in

 

which a nuisance described in section 3801 is located may maintain

 

an action for equitable relief in the name of the state of

 

Michigan, upon on the relation of such the attorney general,

 

prosecuting attorney, or citizen resident to abate said the

 

nuisance and to perpetually enjoin any person, his or a servant,

 

agent, or employee of the person, who shall own, lease, conduct or

 

maintain such owns, leases, conducts, or maintains the building,

 

vehicle, boat, aircraft, or place , from permitting or suffering

 

such the building, vehicle, boat, or aircraft, or place owned,

 

leased, conducted, or maintained by him, the person, or any other

 

building, vehicle, boat, aircraft, or place conducted or maintained

 

by him the person to be used for any of the purposes or acts or by

 

any of the persons set forth described in section 3801. , or for

 

any of the acts enumerated in said section. When the After an

 

injunction has been is granted , under this section it shall be is

 

binding on the defendant throughout the judicial circuit in which

 

it was issued.this state.

 

     Sec. 3810. (1) An owner of the premises within the meaning For

 

purposes of this chapter, is deemed to be the grantee or vendee of

 

the last recorded deed or contract which that describes the

 

premises, or any part thereof upon of the premises, on which any a


 

nuisance exists as heretofore defined, and the described in section

 

3801 is considered to be the owner of the premises. The naming of

 

such person a grantee or vendee as a party defendant in an action

 

under this chapter gives the court authority to abate the nuisance

 

by closing the premises and such the defendant is subject to the

 

order and judgment of the court.

 

     (2) An owner of a vehicle within the meaning For purposes of

 

this chapter, is deemed to be the any person in whose name the a

 

vehicle, boat, or aircraft is titled, and any chattel mortgagee or

 

assignee thereof secured party or other lien holder whose secured

 

interest in or lien against the vehicle, boat, or aircraft has been

 

filed with the secretary of state or in the office of the register

 

of deeds prior to before the commencement of suit, and the an

 

action under this chapter, is considered to be the owner of the

 

vehicle, boat, or aircraft. The plaintiff shall join any such

 

mortgagee, assignee secured party or lien holder as a party

 

defendant.defendant to an action under this chapter.

 

     Sec. 3815. (1) In any an action brought under this chapter,

 

evidence of the general reputation of the building, vehicle, boat,

 

aircraft, or place is admissible for the purpose of proving the

 

existence of the nuisance.

 

     (2) Proof In an action under this chapter, proof of knowledge

 

of the existence of the nuisance on the part of 1 or more of the

 

defendants or any of them, is not required.

 

     (3) It In an action under this chapter, it is not necessary

 

for the court to find the property involved was being used as and

 

for a nuisance at the time of the hearing, or for the plaintiff to


 

prove that the nuisance was continuing at the time of the filing of

 

the complaint was filed, if the complaint is filed within 30 90

 

days after any act, any violation, or the existence of a condition

 

herein defined described in section 3801 as a nuisance, but on

 

finding that the material allegations of the complaint are true,

 

the court shall render enter a judgment and order of abatement as

 

hereinafter provided in this chapter.

 

     Sec. 3820. (1) If any an order or injunction granted under the

 

provisions of this chapter is violated, the court may summarily try

 

and punish the offender as for contempt, and the person so

 

offending shall be punished by is subject to punishment of a fine

 

of not more than $1,000.00 $25,000.00, or by imprisonment in the

 

county jail for not more than 6 months, or by both, fine and

 

imprisonment in the discretion of the court. Such

 

     (2) A violation of an order or injunction granted under this

 

chapter shall be charged by a motion supported by affidavit, and

 

the court, if satisfied of the sufficiency thereof, that the motion

 

and affidavit are sufficient, shall immediately issue a bench

 

warrant for the arrest of such the offender and to bring him or her

 

before such the court to answer for such the misconduct. The court

 

may, in its discretion, permit such the person arrested to give

 

bail and fix the amount thereof of bail pending hearing of the

 

matters charged in such motion.

 

     Sec. 3825. (1) If the existence of the nuisance is established

 

in an action as provided in under this chapter, the court shall

 

enter an order of abatement shall be entered as a part of the

 

judgment in the case, which action. The order of abatement shall


 

direct the order all of the following:

 

     (a) The removal from the building or place of all furniture,

 

fixtures, and contents. therein and shall direct the

 

     (b) The sale thereof of the furniture, fixtures, and contents

 

in the manner provided for the sale of chattels goods under

 

execution. , and the

 

     (c) The effectual closing of the building or place against its

 

use for any purpose, and so keeping it closed for a period of 1

 

year, unless sooner released as provided in this chapter. provided.

 

     (2) Any vehicle, boat, or aircraft found by the court to be a

 

nuisance within the meaning of under this chapter , is subject to

 

the same order and judgment as any furniture, fixtures, and

 

contents as herein provided.under subsection (1).

 

     (3) Upon On the sale of any furniture, fixtures, contents,

 

vehicle, boat, or aircraft as provided in this section, the officer

 

executing the order of the court shall , after deducting do the

 

following in the following order:

 

     (a) Deduct the expenses of keeping such the property and the

 

costs of such the sale. , pay.

 

     (b) Pay all secured interests and liens according to their

 

priorities which may be as established by intervention or otherwise

 

at the hearing or in other proceedings brought for that purpose as

 

being bona fide and as having been created without the lienor

 

secured party or lien holder having any notice that such the

 

property was being used or was to be used for the maintenance of a

 

nuisance as herein defined, and shall paydescribed in section 3801.

 

     (c) Pay the costs incurred in the prosecution of the action,


 

including reasonable attorney fees for services necessitated as

 

determined by the court.

 

     (d) Subject to subsection (5), pay the balance to the state

 

treasurer to be credited to the general fund of the this state.

 

     (4) If any person uses a building or place so directed ordered

 

to be closed , under this section with knowledge that such the

 

building or place is closed by order of the court, he shall be

 

punished as the person is subject to punishment for contempt, as

 

provided in section 3820.

 

     (5) If the court in an action under this chapter declares

 

property to be a nuisance under section 3801(1)(f), the officer

 

executing the order of the court shall, after paying the costs of

 

prosecution as provided in subsection (3), pay part or all of the

 

remaining balance to the victim of the conduct constituting the

 

nuisance as ordered by the court. For purposes of determining the

 

amount due to a victim under this subsection, the court shall

 

consider the loss suffered by the victim as a proximate result of

 

the conduct and may use as guidance the items of loss enumerated in

 

section 16b of the William Van Regenmorter crime victim's rights

 

act, 1985 PA 87, MCL 780.766b.

 

     Sec. 3835. The proceeds of the sale of the personal property,

 

as provided in section 3830, shall be applied in payment of the

 

costs of the action and abatement, and the balance, if any, shall

 

be paid to qualified secured parties and lien holders and then

 

toward the costs incurred in the prosecution of the action,

 

including reasonable attorney fees for services necessitated as

 

determined by the court, and any remaining balance shall be paid to


 

the persons entitled thereto to them as ordered by the court may

 

direct.or, if applicable, as ordered under section 3825(5).