GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2013

H                                                                                                                                                    1

HOUSE BILL 26

Short Title:        Strengthen Laws/Vehicle Theft.		(Public)
Sponsors:	Representative T. Moore (Primary Sponsor). For a complete list of Sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly Web Site.
Referred to:	Judiciary Subcommittee C.

January 31, 2013

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to strengthen the laws protecting against the theft of vehicles for disassembly and resale of parts and to assist law enforcement in the investigation of organized criminal activity associated with the theft of vehicles.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 14-72.7(a) reads as rewritten:

"§ 14-72.7. Chop shop activity.

(a)        A person is guilty of a Class H Class G felony if that person knowingly engages in any of the following activities, without regard to the value of the property in question:

(1)        Altering, destroying, disassembling, dismantling, reassembling, or storing any motor vehicle or motor vehicle part the person knows or has reasonable grounds to believe to be has been illegally obtained by theft, fraud, or other illegal means.

(2)        Permitting a place to be used for any activity prohibited by this section, where the person either owns or has legal possession of the place, and knows or has reasonable grounds to believe that the place is being used for any activity prohibited by this section.

(3)        Purchasing, disposing of, selling, transferring, receiving, or possessing a motor vehicle or motor vehicle part either knowing or having reasonable grounds to believe with the knowledge that the vehicle identification number of the motor vehicle, or vehicle part identification number of the vehicle part, has been altered, counterfeited, defaced, destroyed, disguised, falsified, forged, obliterated, or removed.

(4)        Purchasing, disposing of, selling, transferring, receiving, or possessing a motor vehicle or motor vehicle part to or from a person engaged in any activity prohibited by this section, knowing or having reasonable grounds to believe that the person is engaging in that activity."

SECTION 2.  G.S. 20-62.1(a)  reads as rewritten:

"(a)       Records for Scrap or Parts. - A secondary metals recycler, as defined in G.S. 66-11(a)(3), and a salvage yard, as defined in G.S. 20-137.7(6), purchasing motor vehicles solely for the purposes of dismantling or wrecking such motor vehicles for the recovery of scrap metal or for the sale of parts only, must comply with the provision of G.S. 20-61, provided, however, that a secondary metals recycler or salvage yard may purchase a motor vehicle without a certificate of title, if the motor vehicle is 10 20 model years old or older and the secondary metals recycler or salvage yard comply with the following requirements:

…."

SECTION 3.  G.S. 20-62.1(c) reads as rewritten:

"(c)       Violations. - Any person who knowingly and willfully violates any of the provisions of this section, or any person who falsifies the statement required under subsection (a)(1)g. of this section, shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor for a first offense. A second or subsequent violation of this section is a Class I felony. The court may order a defendant seller under this subsection to make restitution to the secondary metals recycler or salvage yard for any damage or loss caused by the defendant seller arising out of an offense committed by the defendant seller."

SECTION 4.  This act becomes effective December 1, 2013, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.