(a)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter except § 5-21-6, it is a misdemeanor to operate or maintain an automobile junkyard unless:

(1)  It is to be operated and maintained entirely within a building;

(2)  It is to be operated and maintained exclusively for the purpose of salvaging the value as scrap of the material collected, as opposed to reselling parts to be used for the purpose for which they were originally manufactured, and is to be located in a built-up commercial or industrial area, or contiguous to a railroad siding, or on or contiguous to docking facilities; or

(3)  It is:

(i)  More than one thousand feet (1,000?) from the nearest edge of any highway on the interstate or primary system;

(ii)  More than six hundred feet (600?) from any other state highway;

(iii)  More than three hundred feet (300?) from any park, bathing beach, playground, school, church, or cemetery and is not within ordinary view from those places; and

(iv)  Is screened from view either by natural objects or well-constructed and properly maintained fences at least six feet (6?) high.

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Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 5-21-5

  • automobile junkyard: means a place where one or more unserviceable, discarded, worn-out, or junked automobiles, or bodies, engines, tires, parts, or accessories of junked automobiles are gathered together. See Rhode Island General Laws 5-21-3
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6

(b)  It is the duty of the state police and the police of the cities and towns to enforce this section, and any person violating this section shall, upon conviction for the first offense, be punished by a fine of not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100), or by imprisonment for not less than ten (10) days nor more than thirty (30) days, or by both the fine and imprisonment, and shall for a second or subsequent conviction be fined not less than one hundred dollars ($100) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500), or by imprisonment for not less than thirty (30) days nor more than six (6) months, or by both the fine and imprisonment.

History of Section.
P.L. 1965, ch. 138, § 1; P.L. 1966, ch. 118, § 3.