Its been fun..thank you

The time has come for me to end the battle. Thank you to everyone that lent their support and encouragement. We made good progress...the 3rd Street tunnel and pathway are restored to their original beauty, and Riverview Park is once again being used by families for picnics. We now have regular patrols and security checks, which are much appreciated. I sincerely believe that there is a renewed focus by the City and all of us on the growing problem of graffiti, and vandalism in general, in our community. That is a very good thing. Our time and energy were not wasted.

I really do hope that the City of Benicia works toward strengthening the graffiti code and toward implementing an effective multimedia anti-graffiti/vandalism strategy as other cities have done. Those efforts will go a long way towards improving the quality of life for all of us in Benicia, which by the way, is already awesome.

My special thanks to the following people because absent their contributions we would have not gotten to first base.

Thank you Mayor Patterson for answering my calls and emails.

Thank you Chief Spagnoli for spending a significant amount of your valuable time on working with us. You promptly answered each and every one of my queries. Also, I thank you for putting together the neighborhood meeting.

Thank you to the officers of the Benicia Police Department for always quickly responding to our calls for assistance.

Thanks to Officer Fred Ayala for your great attitude and cooperative spirit.

Thank you to Councilman Ioakimedes for continuing a dialogue with us and pledging your support for our neighborhood and our city.

Thank you Roger Core for your efforts. The fact that virtually all graffiti has been abated is a tribute to your effectiveness.

Thank you Sara Stroud from the Vallejo Times Herald and also the Benicia Herald for helping to get the word out.

Thank you friends and neighbors for your continuing support and encouragement. A special thanks to those that gave, and continue to give, constructive guidance and counsel...you know who you are.

Finally, thank you to my wife, Cathy, for her enduring love and patience. Without her, everything would be meaningless.

Please know that I appreciate each and every one of you.

Its been fun...thank you.

- Ross Sagun

Councilman Ioakimedes responds

"Your post 7/21 meeting comments give me the impression that it was a good, frank, productive discussion. I can't disagree when you point out that there is still much to do, butI also feel as though some of the conversation has turned into a them vs. us (citizens vs. City of Benicia). I hope that is not the case, as your actions are proof that more is accomplished when we work together.

I believe that cities that are in constant review of local ordinances
stay on top of maintaining their quality of life issues. A quick look
at most any Benicia City Council agenda will show that Council, City
Staff, City Boards and Commissions, and our citizens in general are
always working toward updating and refining our local ordinances so that
they are effective in responding to today 's world. Again, your
actions and the City 's response are examples of that.

Please believe that graffiti and other related types of crimes will not
be placed on the back burner as long as I am on the Council. I just ask
that we are all mindful that we are all working towards the same goal."

- Mike Ioakimedes


We have heard precious little recently from our City Council about the graffiti and vandalism problem in Benicia. Thank you, Councilman Ioakimedes, for taking the time to address our concerns. I invite all of the members of Benicia's City Council to comment and show just how concerned they are about our concerns and preserving the quality of life in our city.

- Ross Sagun

Graffiti is a sign of government's failure to tend to basic housekeeping

"Graffiti delivers a message. It's a signal to other taggers; a deadly warning to rival gangs; a commentary on the kind of society in which youth earn respect from one another by vandalizing property.

The markings also tell visitors that a neighborhood is not cared for by the people who live there or the city workers who serve it. They are a statement about a city government's failure to tend to basic housekeeping. By the same token, quick removal of the scrawls puts residents and visitors on notice that the community is a place worth defending.

Amid the latest in a succession of graffiti spikes, Los Angeles residents have increasingly responded as soon as tagging appears by calling the city at 311 and reporting it. It takes too long for contractors to remove it -- three-to-five working days, long enough for taggers to broadcast their messages and take credit for their perverse handiwork. But residents at least have a safe way to respond." - Los Angeles Times

Glendale, AZ arrest shows the power of an effective anti-graffiti strategy

Here is a good example of how one city, Glendale, Arizona, effectively utilizes its anti-graffiti/vandalism strategy. Notice that it incorporates the following elements:

1. they have an anti-graffiti website
2. they offer a reward for useful tips
3. they work with prosecutors, asking for charges to be brought
4. they use the media and internet to publicize their successes

Benicia could learn from this city's successes.

- Ross Sagun

Glendale Police Nab Number 1 Graffiti Suspect

GLENDALE, Ariz. – Officers from a Glendale Police Neighborhood Response Squad located and arrested their “most wanted” graffiti vandal yesterday. They arrested him for drug possession charges, but plan to submit 14 cases of Criminal Damage against him for the graffiti incidents.

For several weeks, Officers Randy Stewart and William Keeble have trying to identify a graffiti vandal who uses the tagging name “Scar.” He was the foremost subject depicted on the department’s Graffiti Busters website (www.glendaleaz.com/police/GraffitiBustersMostWanted.cfm). “Scar” is responsible for at least 14 cases of vandalism causing thousands of dollars of damage to block walls, poles, signs and other property throughout north Glendale.

Officer Keeble recently got information that “Scar” is actually Henry Almeter (w/m 2/9/88), a 19 year-old Glendale resident. On December 12th, Officer Keeble went to Almeter’s house in the 7300 block of W. Villa Hermosa Avenue to serve a search warrant. He found Almeter leaving the house and detained him. Almeter was found to be in possession of both marijuana and cocaine and was arrested for those crimes. Officer Keeble then served the search warrant and located numerous items of evidence which link Almeter to graffiti vandalism, along with more illegal drugs. Officer Keeble is submitting 14 different cases of Criminal Damage against Almeter to prosecutors, asking that criminal charges be filed. Almeter will also have to answer for the drugs found on his person and in his residence.

Anyone with information about a graffiti vandal can call the TAG (Together Against Graffiti) Hotline at 602-262-7327. Tips leading to an arrest can qualify for rewards of up to $250.00.

City of Glendale - Police - Graffiti Busters Most Wanted The Glendale Police Department is asking the residents of Glendale for assistance in preventing graffiti throughout the City as well as catching graffiti vandals. The following photos represent some of the existing graffiti incidents that the Police Department is currently pursuing. Do you recognize any of these tags? Do you have information on who is responsible? If so, please CLICK HERE and submit a tip online. If you are witnessing the graffiti being applied now, please contact the Glendale Police Department immediately at (623) 930-3000. Need to have graffiti removed? Click here to submit a removal request online.

[Glendale Police Department]

One city that is getting it right

Police purchase graffiti cameras

By Staff Reports
(Created: Tuesday, August 5, 2008 10:13 AM CDT)
In response to a rash of recent vandalism involving graffiti, the Rowlett [Texas] Police Department has purchased high-tech cameras in hopes of catching the perpetrators and curtailing the problem, the Rowlett Police Department announced this week.

The device uses digital cameras and wireless technology to capture a photograph of the vandals in action. The camera emits a loud audible noise, warning the vandals that their photographs have just been taken. Detectives retrieve the photographs, identify the suspect, and use it in the prosecution.

Even though police say that less than 5 percent of the city’s graffiti is gang-related, it still represents a problem in terms of property values and economic development.

The city began to notice an increase in 2006 when 59 incidents were reports. So far this year, there have been at least 22 cases. The Highpoint Industrial Park is a popular spot for taggers, those who are typically responsible the vandalism.

Rowlett Police Chief Matt Walling said, “The police department and the city’s Economic Development Department met recently with local businesses in the Highpoint Industrial Park to share ideas and information to come up with a plan to reduce the number of graffiti offenses being committed. The “graffiti cameras” are one of the tools identified in the meetings to help combat the graffiti problem. The businesses will also become the “eyes and ears” of the police department by reporting suspicious activity when they observe it. This type of collaborative effort has been successful in cities all across America.”

The cameras, manufactured by Q-Star Technologies in Torrance Calif., are in use in numerous cities throughout the United States. Rowlett police say these cameras have been extremely successful in reducing graffiti, illegal dumping and other criminal activity. The cameras can be deployed rapidly and moved anywhere a problem is identified.

In the past the police have had to depend on catching the suspect in the act or informants to solve these crimes.

Rowlett police say the flexibility to deploy the cameras allow patrol officers to have more time to answer high priority calls.

As part of this new response to vandalism the Rowlett Police Department has launched a graffiti information page on its website at http://www.rowlett.com/Rowlett/Departments/Police/Graffiti_Landing.htm

report_taggers@rowlett.com has been setup for citizens to email detectives with tips on graffiti. Currently the city has an email hotline to report taggers and graffiti artists. The address is report_taggers@rowlett.com. Or they can police dispatch at 972-412-6200 option #1 to report crimes in progress.

The city also is working on other measures such as an abatement response and educational programs.l

Say What?

"... we will develop a right-sized multi-state adaptive human-resource solution to Benicia's graffiti problem. With self-enabling multi-state monitoring, a proactive neutral approach utilizing our grass-roots content-based data-warehouse, we have developed a universal zero tolerance capability and a user-centric non-volatile focus group tasked with developing a realigned didactic budgetary management strategy. This triple-buffered systemic focus group utilizes organized empowering capacity along with focused executive monitoring and incorporates current best practices in our battle against graffiti. With this cross-platform dedicated capacity and re-contextualized responsive policy, it is virtually assured that we will wipe out all graffiti and vandalism in Benicia. "

I prefer, "Git 'er done!"

What we need is an anti-graffiti/vandalism strategy that incorporates the following elements. This will require our City Council and departmental leadership to be proactive.

• a strengthened municipal code section
• consistent enforcement
  
• community-involved anti-graffiti groups
• city-provided graffiti abatement kits for victims
  
• a web presence outlining the City's strategy
  
• rewards for tips leading to the arrest and conviction of perpetrators
  
• an online and dedicated phone line reporting system
• making it known to the DA that we want vandalism prosecuted to the extent allowed by law
  
• an effective anti-vandalism PR campaign utilizing media and school resource officers

Is it possible?

-Ross Sagun

Vandals Strike Benicia Middle School

You never know what you are going to find on your way to the grocery store. As a good citizen, I called it in to the Benicia Police Department.

I asked the dispatcher if it had been previously reported. "No", replied the dispatcher. "That's odd", I replied, "since there is a Benicia Police Department patrol unit sitting in the church driveway looking right at it (and me)".

I guess its true, minor offenses like this are unimportant because "We don't have a graffiti problem in Benicia."

[care to guess who was following me out of the Raley's parking lot?]

How to get serious about graffiti offenders

Man will be held until trial after tagging cell

By Stuart Duncan [Corpus Christi, TX]
Originally published 04:34 a.m., July 31, 2008
Updated 04:34 a.m., July 31, 2008

A man being held on felony graffiti charges will continue to be held until his trial, after he tagged the inside of his cell at the City Detention Center, police said Wednesday.

Ralph Mirabal, 18, is being held without bond at Nueces County Jail, after police say he used a coin to scratch his nickname into the paint of the cell he was being held in.

Mirabal, arrested Friday in connection with graffiti found at Incarnate Word Academy, initially was held on a $50,000 bond.

"He's going to have to talk to (District Judge Sandra) Watts about it," Detective Ben Teed said. "That was the deciding factor in being able to keep him locked up. Normally he would've gotten a bond but he violated the law while on bond for a different charge."

Mirabal faces two years in prison and $10,000 in fines if convicted.

Police weren't sure Wednesday how much it would cost to repair the damaged cell.

Mirabal also was arrested in June for allegedly painting graffiti on several business and homes and on a local children's hospital before bonding out of the county jail.

Contact Stuart Duncan at 886-3792 or duncans@caller.com.

No euphoria expressed or implied

Dear Mr. Schwartz,

Thank you for your kind note. Its obvious that we both have Benicia's best interests in mind. My only point was to say that eliminating the skateboard park probably didn't help the problems on First Street and at the shopping center that you described in your note. It would be interesting to see the police department stats re skateboarding before and after Willow Glen was closed. My guess would be that they are up significantly, as Chief Spagnoli alluded.

As far as the knives, under-aged drinking, and drug activity you mentioned, I'm not sure that closing the park solved those problems either. Instead, they have just been spread out over the entire city. Does a skateboard park really serve as a crime magnet? I doubt it. I think the vast majority of Benicia's youth are great kids. I haven't seen any recent police reports in the daily activity log regarding those types of problems at the new skateboard park located behind Matthew Turner.

No, you are right; I don't have a skateboard park behind my house. I do have a public pathway behind it, and it is frequently used by boarders, and that is just fine with me. I think we agree that its not the boarders or the bikers that are the problem; its those that lack the respect for others.

Unfortunately, in this "me me me" culture that has been fostered over the last few years, few care about anything or anyone but themselves, and that is truly sad.

--Ross Sagun




I too had a skateboard as a kid. This was the era way before skate parks and the like. I in no way blame the skaters for all the defacing, tagging, graffiti, etc. that is so prevalant in this town. I do feel however there is a blatant disregard for other citizens from kids/teens on bikes and skateboards. Try making an ATM deposit at Solano square sometime. Kids on skateboards go through the parking lot with reckless abandon, playing "chicken" with cars and then when you hit the brakes to avoid hitting them and ask them to watch out, in most cases you are thanked with a middle finger and profanity. Try taking a walk on First Street to window shop or relax, you have an excellent chance of being hit by children/teens tearing down the sidewalks on their bikes, skateboard, Razor Scooters, and the like. When you either try to avoid them and point out the signs, in most cases you get the same reaction as I stated about Solano Square. The Willow Glen skatepark was not the euphoric place Mr. Sagun describes. I have been a member of Benicia Fitness during both ownerships. I can't tell you how many times over the years the Police had to come out there to break up fights (I saw knives and the like confiscated) as well as underage drinking, and even some drug activity. The same activity that Mr. Sagun has worked on stopping at the tunnel is not much different from what went on at the skatepark....the difference is the skatepark is not behind "his" house. It is not skateboarding or bikes that are the problem. To me it is a lack of respect for other people and property by whoever is engaging in these activities. Unfortunately the only solution as I see it is increased police patrols and citizen's reporting what they see when they see it. When the culprits are caught there need to be serious implications such as mandatory community service and whatever else it takes to send the message that this will not be tolerated and is socially unacceptable. Jeff Schwartz

What the heck? No graffiti??

A funny thing happened on my walk today. Strolling down the path to my favorite tunnel, I ran across three individuals carrying cameras, lighting equipment, shades, and various photographic equipment. Of course, I couldn't resist inquiring about their activities. It turns out that they were on a "photo shoot" and were looking for a "..San Francisco style graffiti" location for their subject's background. One stated,

"This used to be the worst graffitied place in the whole town."

I am happy to report that this is no longer the case.

- Ross Sagun

Clean as a whistle! - Riverview Park cleaned up!

"Yes, they did clean up the graffiti (and I noticed from your website that you must have taken a trip up there yourself!). I am so happy to see that it was done, and everything looked very nice. In fact, when we went up to look at it there was a group of people having a birthday party with a little BBQ. It was nice to see". -BK

All of that offensive graffiti at Riverview Park is history. Nice work! Thank you to the City and to others that helped make it happen. Working together, we can make sure that Benicia remains a great place to live.

- Ross Sagun

The Broken Window Theory

Graffiti fighters gather to share ideas, tools

taking on taggers

By John Simerman
Contra Costa Times

Article Launched: 08/01/2008 07:37:39 PM PDT

Click photo to enlarge

A pedestrian walks past a mural made of graffiti on International Boulevard and 29th Avenue...

SANTA ROSA — Graffiti tends to tick people off, but for John Rose it goes much deeper.

The Aussie bird-dogs it everywhere his eyes land — on soundwalls, traffic signs, the side of a building far across a shopping center parking lot.

"I cannot go anywhere without seeing graffiti. It's an illness. It's incurable," he said. "I hate graffiti with a vengeance. I'll do anything to get rid of this waste of time and blight that's devaluing our properties."

Rose gladly shares his angry passion, not to mention his foolproof three-step process to get rid of it — modestly named "World's Best Graffiti Removal System."

Which is why he joined dozens of anti-graffiti arms merchants this week at a hotel conference center where 300 officials from California and beyond shared strategies on a problem they say is growing in many cities, with potentially violent consequences.

Among them were police or city officials from across the East Bay, including Antioch, Richmond, Union City and Alameda County.

The two-day conference showcased some notably sophisticated, and in some cases chemically potent, approaches to graffiti and etching in window glass. Aggressive agencies are deploying GPS tracking systems, cameras triggered by motion sensors, and spray-on coatings to make graffiti removal easier.

In some areas, including Southern California, enforcement sweeps have led to jail time and prison sentences as high as two

---

---

years for persistent "taggers."

Under the "broken window theory" of crime prevention, swiftly erasing eyesores such as graffiti discourages more of it and removes what some criminals view as an invitation for more serious trouble in a neighborhood.

"If you leave it up, you're giving up," said Fresno police Sgt. Todd Miller. He and others said the stakes have grown. Tagging, or spray-painting an identifying mark, can often prompt violent clashes, they said. Miller credited graffiti as the spark for two murders and a stabbing in his city in the past month.

Deputies in an Alameda County Sheriff's Office anti-graffiti program agreed, though they had not linked murders to graffiti. "We can attribute violent crime to graffiti. It's all territorial. They're marking spots," said Deputy Paul Liskey. "It increases tensions."

Liskey said it takes coordination among agencies and neighbors, but budget woes have hampered the county's ability to quickly remove graffiti.

Experts say gangs spray just a small fraction of graffiti, and more often it's individual "wannabe" taggers or "street teams" that may later morph into gangs. One police officer called a seeming lack of options for kids the biggest indicator in cities where the problem is rising.

"They're looking for fame, for recognition," said Kenneth Davis, a graffiti and gang specialist in Yonkers, N.Y. "That's a flag there's something going wrong in the household."

Richmond recently launched an anti-graffiti initiative, adding removal crews and enlisting residents across the city. The problem is particularly nettlesome in the city's Iron Triangle, Coronado and Belding Woods neighborhoods, said Trina Jackson, who coordinates the new program.

Jackson said she arrived at the conference anxious to hear how other cities use restitution — forcing taggers to pay for the damage — as a deterrent. "If the kids know they'll be penalized, that'll make a difference," she said. "Right now, they're getting away with it."

Part of the battle, experts said, is commitment from city officials, prosecutors, judges and community members. Some tread lightly because the taggers are juveniles, the crime seems relatively light and because, in some cases, they don't want to be seen as stifling the creativity of some young graffiti artists.

In Union City, Wayne Cruz fights a never ending battle. As the city's lone "graffiti buster," he drives around in a 16-foot trailer from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. each day, color-matching paint and covering up graffiti.

Sprays and surveillance can help, said Cruz, but there's nothing like meeting taggers and letting them know the deal: They spray, he takes away.

"I have an 800 number (for graffiti reports)," he said. "Taggers are actually calling now, saying 'Hey, someone tagged my wall.'"

Governor signs new graffiti law

New California graffiti law: Clean it up and keep it clean

Email Picture

Brian VanderBrug / Los Angeles Times

Judy Baca's "Hitting the Wall" Olympic women's marathon runner mural under the 4th Street bridge on the 110 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles is a victim of graffiti vandals. Caltrans has been painting over other murals in the area.

Gov. Schwarzenegger signs a law sponsored by the city of L.A. It requires convicted vandals to remove their scrawls and keep walls clean for a year.

By Patrick McGreevy, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
July 31, 2008

SACRAMENTO -- At the urging of Los Angeles officials alarmed about graffiti defacing the city's many murals, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a measure into law Wednesday that requires those convicted of the vandalism to remove the scrawls and, in some cases, keep the tagged surfaces clean for one year.

The law was welcomed by many officials as another tool to use against a recent explosion of graffiti, but some gang experts were worried that it might put the offenders in jeopardy if they had to cover up graffiti by other gang members.

• 

The measure applies to graffiti on any surface, including blank walls.

Los Angeles, which sponsored the legislation, has recorded a significant increase in graffiti in the last three years, from 25 million square feet of graffiti-stained surfaces in 2005 to 31.7 million in the year that ended June 30, said Paul Racs, director of the city's Office of Community Beautification.

Last year, the city received reports of graffiti at 653,520 locations, 40,000 more than the year before, he said.

Racs said graffiti was increasing partly because it is celebrated on the Internet.

"There are video games where the good guy is the tagger and the bad guy is the cop," he said. "Graffiti is also used in advertising, so young people are getting a dual message."

Artist Judy Baca, founder of the Social and Public Art Resource Center, has seen graffiti nearly cover her mural "Hitting the Wall" on the 110 Freeway downtown.

Baca said the city had cut funding for the creation and maintenance of murals.

"These kids don't have the possibility of being a muralist themselves," she said, so they angrily ruin murals with graffiti.

The measure makes it mandatory, instead of discretionary, for a court to order a defendant who is convicted of graffiti vandalism to clean up or repair the property when feasible. A judge could decide not to order a tagger to risk his life by keeping graffiti off a sign that hangs over the freeway.

The court also could order the defendant or a minor defendant's parents or guardians to keep the damaged property free of graffiti for up to one year.

"By having to clear up the mess, they would realize how much effort and cost is involved in tidying up after them," said Assemblyman Mike Davis (D-Los Angeles), author of the law.

Some gang experts said the requirement that young offenders remove others' graffiti could put them in harm's way.

"The cause for a lot of violence involves graffiti and either crossing it out or removing it," said Khalid Shah, director of Stop the Violence, a gang intervention program.

He said Homeboy Industries closed a program that put gang members to work removing graffiti after two young people were shot to death while cleaning walls.

patrick.mcgreevy@

latimes.com

You think graffiti is a minor crime? Think again...

Graffiti vandals turn violent in LA

By THOMAS WATKINS

LOS ANGELES (AP) — One man got stabbed. Another got shot in the chest. A 6-year-old boy was temporarily blinded when he was spray-painted in the face.

And they were the lucky ones among those who have had run-ins with graffiti "crews," or gangs.

Over the past 2 1/2 years in Southern California, three people have been killed after trying to stop graffiti vandals in the act. A fourth died after being shot while watching a confrontation between crews in a park.

"We have seen a marked increase in these graffiti-tagging gangs taking to weapons and fighting to protect their walls, their territory, their name," said Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Robert Rifkin.

Los Angeles County has battled graffiti for decades, spending $30 million a year to paint over or clean up the emblems, names and other images spray-painted on stores, concrete-lined riverbeds, rail lines, phone booths, buses, even police cars. On Wednesday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a law requiring convicted graffiti vandals to remove their scrawl.

For some taggers, protecting their work is akin to defending their names and their honor.

"If we see someone calling the police, then we target them," said Mario Garcia, 20, who describes himself as a former tagger trying to become a professional artist. "You are trying to stop me from what I live, what I believe in and what I breathe? We are not going to let no one get in the way."

Workers who remove the graffiti say they take caution if they find a crew at work. They wait until the taggers leave before cleaning up.

"We won't say anything to them," said Rogelio Flores, whose company Graffiti Busters contracts with Los Angeles to blast away the markings with high-pressure hoses. "We don't know what kind of weapons they have."

Police tell residents to resist the urge to confront graffiti crews.

"It's not worth the risk," Rifkin said. "Take a deep breath, back off and call law enforcement."

Some of the violence has been between rival crews, which are increasingly acting like street gangs. And some of the bloodshed has involved real street gangs that mark their turf with their names or emblems. But some of the victims have been innocents.

In an attack last month, two youths spray-painted the face and body of the 6-year-old boy who spotted them scribbling gang signs on a wall near Compton. The boy recovered from chemical burns to his eyes.

On the same day, a 51-year-old auto mechanic was shot in the chest in Los Angeles when he confronted two suspected gang members painting the wall of his shop.

Another man, Michael Lartundo, 26, was stabbed in the hand and arm after yelling at a group of graffiti vandals scrawling on a wall in March behind his brother's house in suburban Whittier.

"I just told them it ain't right," Lartundo recalled. "I said, 'If you are going to write on the wall, write on your own wall.'"

The most recent attack occurred July 15, when a 16-year-old boy was shot and killed after rival graffiti crews converged on a Los Angeles park for a fight. The victim was in a crowd of onlookers.

Last August, Maria Hicks, 58, was shot in the head and died after flashing her headlights and honking at a teenager spray-painting a wall near her home in Pico Rivera, a blue-collar suburb east of Los Angeles. Four people have been charged with murder.

Ten days after Hicks died, Seutatia Tausili, 65, was fatally shot and her grandson wounded when he told taggers to stop vandalizing a trash can outside their home in Hesperia in San Bernardino County. Three men were charged with murder.

Robert Whitehead was shot to death in 2006 in the Los Angeles County area of Valinda when he tried to keep taggers from marking a neighbor's garage. Investigators arrested one man with alleged ties to the Mexican Mafia, a prison gang.

Artist Dartagnan Curiel, 31, said he used to scrawl graffiti and grew sick of the violence. He now paints murals with positive messages as a way to speak out against the bloodshed in his Los Angeles neighborhood and to encourage graffiti vandals and gang members to lay down their arms.

"Why would you want to put spray paint on a kid's face?" he says. "We live in the same community. We are all in this hellhole together."

Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Where is a skateboarder to go?

I had a skateboard when I was a kid. Didn't you? First came the steel-wheeled roller skates with the red leather straps. Then, the little red board with the steel wheels. Wow, was that a hit! Bigger than hula-hoops. Finally, I graduated to a real board with Chicago wheels that my dad bought for me at the local Sears Roebuck. Of course, a stone the size of a baby aspirin would send me flying but what fun it was? Those were the days my friends...

It would have been hard to imagine that someday (today) skateboarding would become a problem. Even more difficult to imagine would have been giving the issue any thought, especially at 12:30am. Nevertheless, here I am, some 40 years later, doing just that.

One just has to look at some of the graffiti to see that it has a "skateboarder" slant. "Skate or Die" is pretty clear to me. And 85 skateboard citations by the Benicia Police Department in the span of one month seems like more than an occasional boarder. I disagree with Chief Spagnoli's contention that "there is not necessarily a connection between skateboarding and criminal activity, specifically graffiti". There is not necessarily a connection between Benicia and graffiti, but we still have it, don't we?

Let's face it; Benicia isn't exactly a place that will set one's hair on fire, nor would we wish it to be. But when you take away one of the few really well-utilized distractions for kids (aka the Willow Glen skateboard park), what should we expect? [Answer: lots of bored kids on skateboards all over town looking for something to do.]

I don't know about you, but I thought the park was a pretty cool idea. Too bad its now just a pile of rubble.

..Ross Sagun



"After the Willow Glen Skate Park was closed for safety reasons, it seemed that there was more skateboarding in town. The city began getting more complaints about this and I have heard a number of people remark about the activity. Without a facility downtown, it is not surprising that there is more activity, especially while school is out. I have not had a bad encounter with skaters, in fact, just the opposite. I talk to the younger ones and remind them to wear a helmet and ask them about "safe places" to skate and steer them toward more acceptable places other than the street." - Mayor Patterson


"We received an email last week regarding skateboard and bicycle violations. DC Bidou discussed the enforcement procedure on bikes and skateboards along with some stats on skateboard enforcement (See below). On skateboarders, we have issued 85 skateboard cites between 7-1-07 and 7-1-08. This is a pretty high number considering the other duties and responsibilities officers tend to."" - Chief Spagnoli

Chief Spagnoli responds about Riverview Park

Sandra -
Thank you for following up on the graffiti problems at Riverview Park. I am sure that the residents living nearby will appreciate your efforts and the extra patrol.
..Ross Sagun

----- Original Message -----
From: Sandra Spagnoli

Sent: Wednesday, July 30, 2008 9:57 PM
Subject: Re: [Safe Neighborhoods Benicia] Riverview Park - the latest target


Hello Ross,

I am following up on your email regarding Riverview Park. As you know, the Park and Rec Director Mike Alvarez, has committed to cleaning up graffiti and hazards within our parks within 24 hours of notification. Unfortunately, Riverview Park is not a City park. This park is part of a federally funded program and maintained by the Housing Authority. We have forwarded the clean up request to them and they will have 72 hours once we notify them to abate the graffiti.

Also, we have found that in Benicia, there is not necessarily a connection between skateboarding and criminal activity, specifically graffiti. Many of the juvenile curfew violators officers come in contact with during evening hours are out and about walking on foot.

Last, we will add the park to our current list of patrol checks too.

Sincerely,

Sandra

Sandra Spagnoli
Chief of Police
City of Benicia
200 East L Street
Benicia, CA 94510
(707) 746-4265
sspagnoli@ci.benicia.ca.us

*Integrity* Pride* Professionalism*Honor*Respect*

Riverview Park - the latest target

Message

Here are some comments from residents in the Riverview Terrace area. It looks like the vandals are at it again. Marking pens seem to be the culprit this time. Anyone for a stronger anti-graffiti city ordinance? Is the City listening?? A lot of this vandalism seems to be "skateboarder" related. Too bad the boarders don't have someplace convenient to go and occupy their time. This is costing us a lot more than it would have to repair the skateboard park.
..Ross Sagun


"A Mom in the Benicia Moms Club recently forwarded a link to your blog, and I have found it really interesting because I live close to your neighborhood (in Benicia Terrace). My husband and I have been very frustrated over the past few years because the park in our neighborhood (up in front of Riverhill Road) is constantly vandalized and strewn with broken glass (the most blatent offense being when each and every garbage can in the park was burned out - still not fixed). We used to take our kids up there but every single Saturday my husband would have to go up and remove graffiti and sweep up broken glass before we could visit. It feels like that park is overlooked by city staff (and I have to say that I don't blame them because it seems like the minute something is cleaned up it is destroyed again)."

Message"I haven't been there in a few weeks now (we don't go as often as we do to other city parks because of the condition). My experience is that there is always broken glass in the little concrete "roundabout" that is up by the downtown overlook."

"I went up to the park today and was reminded immediately of why I don't go there often. There was broken glass in the playground bark (yes, IN the bark) although it wasn't in its usual place, which is the cement roundabout by the downtown overlook. There were profane pictures and obscene graffiti written on the slide and the other play equipment."

"It's so frustrating. I remember that when the new Water's End park was opened about a year ago, we went on the second day and someone had defaced the brand new playstructure (within the first 48 hours of it being open). It's just totally demoralizing."

Congratulations Vallejo!

Vallejo gets grant for anti-graffiti effort
Author: Times-Herald staff report
Date: July 25, 2008
Publication: Times-Herald (Vallejo, CA)
Article ID: 9995049

Once taggers deface a surface with graffiti, Vallejo city officials and volunteers have vowed to paint it as soon as possible. In the fight against graffiti, the city will have a lot more cans of paint in its arsenal thanks to a $20,000 grant from State Farm Insurance.

State Farm officials will publicly present the funds Aug. 12 during a City Council meeting, said Vallejo Code Enforcement Manager Nimat Shakoor-Grantham.


Funds will go toward the graffiti abatement program, ...

What's in an effective anti-graffiti strategy (and do we have one)?

What exactly are the elements of an effective anti-graffiti prevention and abatement strategy? Does Benicia's strategy include these elements?


* A central number for citizens to call in to report graffiti
Yes - residents can call 745-3412 or 911 for crimes in progress

* A database to record the calls,locations, and photos of each occurrence
Yes - I am told that there is a photo book at the PD

* The database should include pictures as well as victim information, cost, suspect info
Not sure - Director of Public Works could not quantify the cost or the extent of graffiti abatement in Benicia

* Graffiti should be removed within 24 hours with attention to removal within the first few hours around schools and high traffic areas.
No. Benicia's municipal code stipulates removal within 72 hours.

* A strong message from the City council and Mayor to the Police Chief that graffiti WILL BE a priority call and investigation. This is normally an area where graffiti programs are doomed to fail.
No.

* A graffiti abatement officer or citizen-led graffiti task force
No.


* Public service messages advertising the graffiti hotline and requesting public support
No.

* A zero tolerance policy including prosecuting offenders to the maximum extent provided for by law
No.

* Working with the district attorney to ensure that he/she understands the priority our city wishes to place upon vandalism offenses
No.

* Working with local businesses to remind them of laws pertaining to sale of graffiti implements to minors
No.

* Encouraging vendors to keep graffiti implements secured
No.

* Methods to measure vendor compliance with existing regulations
No.

* Free paint, roller/brushes, and power washers to groups who want to do clean up and/or paint outs in their community.
No.

Obviously, there is room for improvement. I invite comments from all, including our city officials.

Thank you

Dear Fellow Neighbors,

Thank you to those of you that could attend the neighborhood meeting this evening. We heard a lot; some good ideas, some expected PR mitigation ("we are doing the best we can","we have everything under control"), and some unanswered questions.

I think we are making progress, as evidenced by the much improved appearance of the pathway and the tunnel. The abatement effort has been successful. However, I remain concerned about the bigger issues of prevention, not just of graffiti but vandalism in general. One only has to look at the police log (available at http://pdpresslog.ci.benicia.ca.us/Daily_Activity_Report.pdf ) to see that vandalism in Benicia is a common occurrence. Hopefully, our activism will go a long way towards lowering our incident rate, at least in our neighborhood. The word is spreading...we report suspicious activity in this neighborhood.


Will the graffiti code be strengthened? Will the PD aggressively pursue enforcement and prosecution as allowed by law? Will the school resource officer incorporate an anti-vandalism theme? Time will tell...time always tells all. You all deserve a pat on the back for standing up and being heard. Without the noise, without the clamor, absolutely nothing would have changed.


Thank you for standing up, and thank you for your support.

..Ross Sagun