§ 13-1806 — Unlawful failure to return rented or leased property; notice; classification

A. A person commits unlawful failure to return rented property if, without notice to and permission of the lessor of the property, the person knowingly fails without good cause to return the property within seventy-two hours after the time provided for return in the rental agreement.

B. If the property is not leased on a periodic tenancy basis, the person who rents out the property shall include the following information, clearly written as part of the terms of the rental agreement:

1. The date and time the property is required to be returned.

2. The maximum penalties if the property is not returned within seventy-two hours of the date and time listed in paragraph 1.

C. If the property is leased on a periodic tenancy basis without a fixed expiration or return date the lessor shall include within the lease clear written notice that the lessee is required to return the property within seventy-two hours from the date and time of the failure to pay any periodic lease payment required by the lease.

D. It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the defendant was physically incapacitated and unable to request or obtain permission of the lessor to retain the property or that the property itself was in such a condition, through no fault of the defendant, that it could not be returned to the lessor within such time.

E. Unlawful failure to return rented or leased property if the property is a motor vehicle is a class 5 felony. In all other cases, unlawful failure to return rented or leased property is a class 1 misdemeanor.