Spray paint a wall, pay a fine
From City News Service:
LOS ANGELES (CNS) - An ordinance tentatively approved today would enable the county to fine taggers for the damage they cause.
The Board of Supervisors will take a final vote on the ordinance next week. If approved, it would take effect in 30 days, county spokesman Brian Lew said. Supervisor Gloria Molina came up with the idea after a Pico Rivera grandmother was gunned down Aug. 10, 2007, when she tried to stop a graffiti vandal from defacing a wall near her home.
The average taxpayer cost to catch a tagger is $665, and the average cost of removing or painting over graffiti is $552 per incident, according to Chief Executive Officer William Fujioka.
In response to the Pico Rivera killing, the county created a six-month pilot program known as the Vandalism Enforcement Team, which targeted taggers in Pico Rivera and the unincorporated area near Whittier. Between Jan. 6 and June 30, the team arrested 168 taggers who had caused an estimated $345,000 in damage, according to sheriff's Capt. Michael Rothans. Violent crime in those areas also dropped, he said, and none of the
suspects initially arrested were caught reoffending.
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About the Blogger
Larry Altman has covered crime in the South Bay since 1990. He's seen it all - the missing model who turned up dead in the desert, the wives found dead in trunks, the high-school coaches who get a little too close to their players. He drives his young colleagues nuts with his "I remember when" stories. He welcomes your tips and observations about the present, and you can mix in a little Lakers basketball talk if you like.
E-mail Larry at larry.altman@dailybreeze.com.
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