Delaware General Assembly


CHAPTER 35 - MOTOR VEHICLES TO BE EQUIPPED WITH SAFETY GLASS

AN ACT MAKING IT UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE A MOTOR VEHICLE ON ANY PUBLIC STREET OR HIGHWAY IN THIS STATE UNLESS SUCH MOTOR VEHICLE BE EQUIPPED WITH SAFETY GLASS WHENEVER GLASS IS USED IN PARTITIONS, DOORS, WINDOWS OR WINDSHIELDS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Delaware in General Assembly met:

Section 1. That on and after July 1, 1935, and except as hereinafter otherwise provided, it shall be unlawful to operate, on any public highway or street in this State, any motor vehicle which is registered in the State of Delaware and which shall have been manufactured or assembled on or after July 1, 1935, unless such motor vehicle be equipped with safety glass, wherever glass is used in partitions, doors, windows, or windshields.

Section 2. That the term "safety glass" as used in this act shall be construed as meaning glass so treated or combined with other materials as to reduce, in comparison with ordinary sheet glass or plate glass, the likelihood of injury to persons by objects from external sources or by glass when the glass is cracked or broken.

Section 3. That the provisions of this Act shall not apply, to any private passenger motor vehicle of less than eight-passenger seating capacity which is not used for carrying passengers for compensation or hire, or to any truck, if such private passenger motor vehicle, or such truck, shall have been registered previously in another state by the owner while the owner was a bona fide resident of the same other state.

Section 4. That the Motor Vehicle Department of this State shall maintain a list of approved types of glass, conforming to the specifications and requirements for safety glass as set forth in this Act, and shall not issue a license for or relicense any motor vehicle subject to the provisions of this act, unless such motor vehicle be equipped as herein provided with such approved type of glass.

Section 5. That the said Motor Vehicle Department shall require sellers in bills of sale and owners of motor vehicles in certificates of title to certify the type of glass used in partitions, doors, windows and windshields of each car sold, and whether said vehicle Was manufactured or assembled after July 1, 1935.

Section 6. That the operator owner or custodian of any motor vehicle which is operated in violation of the provisions of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof in any Court of competent jurisdiction, shall be subjected to a fine of $25.00, or ten days in jail, or both, in the discretion of the Court. In case of any violation of the provisions of this act by any common carrier or person operating under a permit or certificate issued by any public authority, in addition to such penalty, such permit or certificate shall be revoked, or, in the discretion of the issuing authority, suspended, until the provisions of this act are satisfactorily complied with.

Approved April 12, 1935.