Community Resources
Graffiti Prevention: Partnering with Law Enforcement
Why partner with law enforcement?
Effective community graffiti prevention programs coordinate closely with local law enforcement. Police are critical to enforcing anti-graffiti laws, they are an integral part of any graffiti hotline and database, they are effective educators about graffiti vandalism in neighborhoods and schools, and they are the ones that ultimately make the arrests.
Tips for working with law enforcement
- Get the support of elected officials - A primary motivator for law enforcement to get involved in graffiti prevention is political support. When a city's mayor calls for immediate and long-term attention to graffiti and other quality of life issues, the police chief is able to take action. Resident and business community concerns are also a high police priority.
- Establish a graffiti hotline - A graffiti hotline helps police and clean up crews respond in a timely way to reports of graffiti vandalism. Law enforcement is an integral part of any communication from a community graffiti reporting line. Ensure that graffiti reports go to the right person and get a rapid response.
- Facilitate partnerships - Any community response to graffiti vandalism should be an organized effort that includes law enforcement as a key partner in conjunction with other city departments (e.g., public works), businesses, and volunteers groups. Law enforcement knowledge and experience bring authority to any community graffiti prevention initiative.
- Involve them at schools - Law enforcement involvement with school graffiti prevention programs can help police monitor and gather information about known graffiti vandals on school campuses, and provide intervention at school.
- Coordinate clean up efforts - Report all graffiti vandalism to the police so that they can identify and document graffiti before it is removed. Police can also help with safety issues related to removal of gang graffiti.
What to request from law enforcement
- A dedicated graffiti expert - Request at least one individual in the police department specialize as a graffiti expert.
- Accountability - Request an assigned, established law enforcement contact responsible for graffiti vandalism and any related issues. Receive regular, such as monthly, reports or meet with law enforcement to review graffiti prevention efforts. Identify specific law enforcement activities and a timeline for completing or enacting them.
- An intelligence database - Establish an intelligence database, e.g., Tag Alert or an Excel spreadsheet. Also encourage regional networking and coordination to track and apprehend graffiti vandals. Law enforcement may also want to monitor graffiti web sites (e.g., Art Crimes) for any upcoming graffiti-related events and shows to help stop these before they happen.
- Enforcement of local anti-graffiti laws - Educate law enforcement about any anti-graffiti laws and make sure they have the tools to enforce them. This may include in-store compliance of any ordinance that prohibits spray paint sales to minors. Learn more about encouraging stores to practice "responsible retailing".
- Coordination with the courts - Provide a way for law enforcement to work with the courts, probation officers, and the District Attorney's office to share intelligence, and to ensure graffiti vandals are properly monitored and prosecuted.
- Publicize graffiti arrests - Ask law enforcement to announce graffiti arrests to the media. The effect of this is to create more perceived risk for the offender. And, once law enforcement has established a plan for targeting graffiti vandals, put offenders on notice. This includes using the media to publicly announce police vigilance about responding to graffiti vandalism and making arrests. Do not publicize tag or crew names, the tagger's real name, or any photos of graffiti. Learn more about graffiti and the media
Potential obstacles
Partnering with local law enforcement may be hindered by a variety of obstacles. Here are a few:
- Limited budget - Law enforcement budgets for personnel and other resources may be limited. Budget allocation is based on priority and unless a top elected official calls for increased attention to graffiti, law enforcement may be unable to reallocate or budget for activities to curb graffiti vandalism.
- Narrow focus - Taggers are not typically recognized as a major law enforcement issue. When asked about graffiti vandalism, many police departments will say, "We already have a gang unit." While only 5-10% of graffiti is gang-related, 85% or more of the public associates any graffiti with gang activity. [Source: Sergeant Dwight Waldo, Supervisor, San Bernardino Graffiti Task Force, San Bernardino, California Police Department.]
- Lack of long-term commitment - A sudden spike in graffiti and an outcry from citizens or elected officials, may cause police to respond with a short "crackdown," stepping up police presence, increasing enforcement, and publicizing arrests. Crackdowns, however, have proven to be ineffective when they are not coordinated with other anti-graffiti efforts, and when there is no long-term plan. [Source: Michael S. Scott, "The Benefits and Consequences of Police Crackdowns" U.S. Department of Justice, Office of COPS, September 30, 2003.]
