It shall be the duty of the State Department of Public Welfare to investigate all complaints made in the form of a sworn affidavit against such institutions as are named in the preceding section, and all orphanages of whatever name or character, which are conducted by individuals for their own personal gain or profit, or which either charge for their services or subsist wholly or in part by money collected by subscription from the public as a charity. In event the complaints are found to be true, the Department shall have the power to order such institutions closed, and upon failure or refusal of the proprietors or operators of such institutions to obey the order shall file a complaint in a court of competent jurisdiction and ask that they be legally restrained from operating said institutions, and if guilty of malpractice, mistreatment or any illegal act, that they be punished according to law.
R.L.1910, § 8097. Amended by Laws 1978, c. 244, § 32, eff. July 1, 1978.