Police will write up spray-painters under a new statute, passed in 2010 under the sponsorship of State Rep. Juan LaFonta, that makes tagging buildings in the protected French Quarter a felony punishable by up to two years in jail.Our entire law enforcement infrastructure is made up of helpless bullies who are out of ideas.
Previously, it was a misdemeanor for municipal court, with "a slap on the wrist" for punishment, Cavett said.
Still, upgrading spray-painting French Quarter property to felony status plays into the robust jail debate of 2010 and earlier this year, when city officials approved construction of a smaller post-Katrina Orleans Parish Prison and set a goal to reduce the city's incarceration rate, one of the highest in the nation.
Walls and other police officials were unavailable for comment. But the district attorney's office confirmed the initiative, and said it would use the felony statute to prosecute if police brought them cases.
In fact, records show that three graffiti arrests in recent weeks have been handled as felonies; each of the defendants is still awaiting trial.
Adding... I liked it better when we were using the strongly worded (although poorly spelled) letters approach.
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