55-8-113 - Display or sale of unauthorized signs, signals or markings.
55-8-113. Display or sale of unauthorized signs, signals or markings.
(a) No person shall place, maintain or display upon or in view of any highway any unauthorized sign, signal, marking or device that purports to be or is an imitation of or resembles an official traffic control device or railroad sign or signal, or that attempts to direct the movement of traffic, or that hides from view or interferes with the effectiveness of any official traffic control device or any railroad sign or signal.
(b) No person shall sell or offer for sale any traffic control signal or device for use on any street, road, or highway in this state unless the device conforms to the requirements of this chapter.
(c) No person shall place or maintain nor shall any public authority permit upon any highway any traffic sign or signal bearing any commercial advertising.
(d) This section shall not be deemed to prohibit the erection upon private property adjacent to highways of signs giving useful directional information and of a type that cannot be mistaken for official signs.
(e) Every prohibited sign, signal or marking is declared to be a public nuisance and the authority having jurisdiction over the highway is empowered to remove the sign, signal or marking or cause it to be removed without notice.
(f) A violation of this section is a Class C misdemeanor.
[Acts 1955, ch. 329, § 12; 1978, ch. 671, § 1; T.C.A., § 59-813; Acts 1989, ch. 591, § 113.]