Massachusetts Statutes

Section 69A. Whoever knowingly and fraudulently displays or otherwise uses, in any manner whatsoever, the seal, trademark or insignia of any labor organization as defined by subsection (5) of section two of chapter one hundred and fifty A shall be punished by a fine of not more t…

Section 7. Whoever by wantonly or recklessly setting fire to any material, or by increasing a fire already set, causes injury to, or the destruction of, any growing or standing wood of another shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment fo…

Section 70. Whoever, not being a member and without authority of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, the Grand Army of the Republic, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, the Woman's Relief Corps, the American Gold Star Mothers, Inc., the Union Vet…

Section 71. Whoever wilfully, by color or aid of any false token or writing, or other false pretence or false statement, verbal or written, or without authority of the grand or supreme governing lodge, council, union or other governing body hereinafter mentioned, obtains the sign…

Section 71A. No person, society, association or corporation shall knowingly assume, adopt or use the name of a benevolent, humane, fraternal, charitable or labor organization, whether incorporated or unincorporated, or a name so nearly resembling the name of such incorporated or …

Section 72. Whoever, in a newspaper or other publication, or in any written or printed letter, notice, matter or device, without authority of the grand or supreme governing lodge, council, union or other governing body, fraudulently uses or aids in any way in the use of the name,…

Section 73. Whoever, with intent to defraud, by a false pretence of carrying on business and dealing in the ordinary course of trade, obtains from any person goods or chattels shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than five years or by a fine of not m…

Section 74. An officer, agent, clerk or servant of a corporation organized or doing business in the commonwealth, who wilfully uses the name of such corporation, or his own name as such officer, agent, clerk or servant, to obtain money upon the credit of such corporation for his …

Section 75. Whoever, by a game, device, sleight of hand, pretended fortune telling or by any trick or other means by the use of cards or other implements or instruments, fraudulently obtains from another person property of any description shall be punished as in the case of larce…

Section 75A. Whoever operates or causes to be operated, or attempts to operate or to cause to be operated, any automatic vending machine, slot machine, turnstile, coin-box telephone or other receptacle designed to receive lawful coin of the United States or tokens provided by the…

Section 75B. Whoever manufactures for sale, advertises for sale, sells, offers for sale, or gives away any slug, device or substance whatsoever, designed or calculated to be placed or deposited in any automatic vending machine, slot machine, turnstile, coin-box telephone or other…

Section 75C. Whoever sells or offers to sell a gift certificate as defined in section 1 of chapter 255D, which imposes a time limit of less than 7 years within which such certificate may be redeemed, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $300. This section shall not apply …

Section 75D. Whoever sells or offers to sell a gift certificate, as defined in section 1 of chapter 255D, which imposes dormancy fees, latency fees, administrative fees, periodic fees, service fees or other fees that have the effect of reducing the total value amount for which th…

Section 75E. Whoever sells or offers to sell a gift certificate, as defined in section 1 of chapter 255D, which imposes any fees or charges including, but not limited to, purchase fees, activation fees, renewal fees or cancellation fees, shall provide to consumers notice of any s…

Section 75F. Whoever redeems a gift certificate, as defined in section 1 of chapter 255D and deducts a gratuity therefrom without the consent of the holder of the gift certificate, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $300 per violation.

Section 76. Whoever is convicted of any gross fraud or cheat at common law shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than ten years or in jail for not more than two years or by a fine of not more than four hundred dollars.

Section 77. Whoever makes or sells, or offers to sell or dispose of, or has in his possession with intent so to do, any article of merchandise marked, stamped or branded with the words ''sterling'', ''sterling silver'', ''coin'' or ''coin silver'', or encased or enclosed in any b…

Section 78. Whoever makes or sells, or offers for sale or disposes of, or has in his possession with intent so to do, any article constructed in whole or in part of gold or alloy of gold, or of any metal resembling gold, having marked thereon or upon any tag or label attached the…

Section 79. Whoever, himself, or by his agent or servant, or as the agent or servant of another person, sells or exchanges, or has in his custody or possession with intent so to do, or exposes for sale or exchange, any manufactured imitations of furs of fur-bearing animals, repre…

Section 8. Whoever, not being a tenant thereof, sets or increases a fire upon land of another whereby the property of another is injured, or whoever negligently or wilfully suffers any fire upon his own land to extend beyond the limits thereof whereby the woods or property of ano…

Section 80. Whoever conveys land, knowing that an encumbrance exists thereon, without informing the grantee, before the consideration is paid, of the existence and nature of such encumbrance, so far as he has knowledge thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than …

Section 81. Whoever, knowing that his land is attached on mesne process, sells and conveys it without giving notice of the attachment to the grantee, and with intent to defraud, shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than three years or in jail for not…

Section 82. Whoever, with a fraudulent intent to place personal property which is subject to a mortgage beyond the control of the mortgagee, removes or conceals or aids or abets in removing or concealing the same, and a mortgagor of such property who assents to such removal or co…

Section 83. A mortgagor of personal property who sells or conveys the same or any part thereof without the written consent of the mortgagee, and without informing the vendee or grantee that the same is mortgaged, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars or…

Section 84. A hirer or lessee of personal property who sells or conveys the same or any part thereof without the written consent of the owner or lessor, and without informing the vendee or grantee that it is so hired or leased, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hun…

Section 85. Whoever, holding collateral security deposited with him for the payment of a debt which may be due to him, sells, pledges, lends or in any way disposes of the same before such debt becomes due and payable, without the authority of the depositor thereof, shall be punis…

Section 86. Whoever, with intent to defraud, buys, receives or aids in concealing personal property, knowing it to be hired or leased or held as collateral security, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not more than one year.

Section 87. Any person leasing or renting personal property who, with the intent to place such property beyond the control of the owner, conceals or aids or abets the concealment of such property or any part thereof, or fails or refuses to return such property to the owner within…

Section 87A. The owner or lessee of a leased or rented motor vehicle which has been stolen or placed beyond his control shall report the loss of the same to the police department of the city or town wherein said vehicle was leased or rented or stolen. Notwithstanding any provisio…

Section 88. A consignee or factor who, in violation of good faith and with intent to defraud the owners thereof, deposits or pledges, as security for money borrowed by him, a negotiable instrument received by him, merchandise consigned or intrusted to him, or a bill of lading, ce…

Section 89. Whoever, in a book, pamphlet, circular, advertisement or advertising sign, or by a pretended written certificate or diploma, or otherwise in writing, knowingly and falsely pretends to have been an officer or teacher, or to be a graduate or to hold any degree, of a col…

Section 9. Whoever, in a town which accepts this section or has accepted corresponding provisions of earlier laws, sets a fire on land which is not owned or controlled by him and before leaving the same neglects to entirely extinguish such fire, or whoever wilfully or negligently…

Section 90. Whoever, in a book, pamphlet, circular, advertisement or advertising sign, or otherwise in writing, makes any false and fraudulent statement or assertion of endorsement, authority, approval or sanction of an incorporated college, university or professional school in t…

Section 91. Any person who, with intent to sell or in any way dispose of merchandise, securities, service, or anything offered by such person, directly or indirectly, to the public for sale or distribution, or who, with intent to increase the consumption of or demand for such mer…

Section 91A. Any person who offers for sale merchandise, commodities or service by making, publishing, disseminating, circulating or placing before the public within the commonwealth, in a newspaper or other publication, or in the form of a book, notice, handbill, poster, bill, c…

Section 91B. Any person offering for sale merchandise, commodities or service by making, publishing, disseminating, circulating or placing before the public within the commonwealth in any manner an advertisement of merchandise, commodities, or service, with the intent, design or …

Section 92. Whoever wilfully and with intent to defraud makes or publishes, or causes or permits to be made or published in any way whatever, any book, prospectus, notice, report, statement, exhibit, advertisement or other publication of or concerning the affairs, financial condi…

Section 92A. Whoever sells a motor vehicle knowing that its engine or electrical parts have been submerged in water, or knowing that it has been used as a police car, a taxicab, a rental vehicle by a motor vehicle rental agency, or a leased vehicle which has been leased to any co…

Section 93. Whoever, by a false pretence, obtains from any club, association, society or company for improving the breed of cattle, horses, sheep, swine or other domestic animals, the registration, or a certificate thereof, of any animal in the herd register, or any other registe…

Section 94. Whoever wilfully, intentionally and without right breaks down, injures, removes or destroys a monument erected for the purpose of designating the boundaries of a town or of a tract or lot of land, or a tree which has been marked for that purpose, or so breaks down, in…

Section 95. Whoever wilfully or maliciously removes, displaces, destroys, defaces, mars or injures any monument, tablet or other device erected to mark an historic place or to commemorate an historic event shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or by im…

Section 96. Whoever wilfully, intentionally and without right defaces, mars or injures the walls, wainscoting or any other part of any building belonging to the commonwealth, or the appurtenances thereof, by cutting, writing or otherwise, shall be punished by a fine of not less t…

Section 97. Whoever wilfully mars or injures the walls, wainscoting or any other part of a court house, jail or house of correction, or of any other building or room used for county business, or the appurtenances thereof, by cutting, writing or otherwise, shall be punished by imp…

Section 98. Whoever wilfully, intentionally and without right, or wantonly and without cause, destroys, defaces, mars or injures a schoolhouse, church or other building erected or used for purposes of education or religious instruction, or for the general diffusion of knowledge, …

Section 98A. Whoever wilfully, intentionally and without right, or wantonly and without cause destroys, defaces, mars or injures any playground apparatus or equipment located in a public park or playground shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars.

Section 99. As used in sections ninety-nine A and one hundred, the following words shall have the following meanings:— ''Library materials and property'', any book, plate, picture, portrait, photograph, broadside, engraving, painting, drawing, map, specimen, print, lithograph, ch…