It shall be an affirmative defense for the owner or landlord to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that said owner or landlord attempted to abate the alleged criminal nuisance prior to receiving notice in writing of the State‘s intent to bring a criminal nuisance abatement action regarding the premises. Examples of actions that are indicia of attempts to abate alleged criminal nuisances include but are not limited to:

(1) Sending or delivering a notice pursuant to § 5513 of Title 25 that the conduct of the tenant, or their guests or invitees, breaches a rule or covenant that is material to the rental agreement;

(2) Sending or delivering a termination notice pursuant to § 5513(a) or (b) of Title 25;

(3) Filing an action for summary possession of the rental unit;

(4) Seeking police intervention to have those responsible for the action prosecuted and actively assisting the police in efforts to prosecute those responsible for the actions or activities being complained of by the complainants.

72 Del. Laws, c. 484, § ?1; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § ?1; 76 Del. Laws, c. 158, § ?9; 78 Del. Laws, c. 161, § ?13;

Terms Used In Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 7107

  • Criminal nuisance: means any real property at which:

    a. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 7103

  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Owner: means any person in whom is vested the ownership and title of property, and who is the owner of record. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 7103
  • premises: includes any building, structure, erection, or any separate part or portion thereof, whether used as a residence, for commercial purposes or a house of worship, or the ground itself. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 7103
  • Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
  • State: means the State of Delaware; and when applied to different parts of the United States, it includes the District of Columbia and the several territories and possessions of the United States. See Delaware Code Title 1 Sec. 302