Graffiti Crackdown in Yucaipa

An ordinance approved Monday evening that cracks down on graffiti crimes includes $1,000 fines, rewards, a volunteer "graffiti buster" crew to clean up the messes and a sophisticated surveillance system that police believe will lead to more search warrants and arrests.

"The civil penalty can be as high as $1,000 for each act of graffiti vandalism, which means, for example, that a tagger who is found guilty of placing five tags can be fined $5,000," said John McMains, Yucaipa's community development director. "If he or she is a minor, the parents will become responsible for payment of the civil penalty."

Mayor Dick Riddell said the ordinance will give Yucaipa more muscle by making tagging both a misdemeanor and a municipal code violation, allowing the city to impose substantial civil penalties.

Several recent outbreaks of graffiti vandalism on public and private property prompted the ordinance, city officials said.