ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : Stopping the Taggers

Orange County cleared from the recent winter rains only to discover its familiar sunshine illuminating a new round of eyesores. We have had graffiti before, but not like that seen around the county in recent weeks.

Local experts say young “tagging crews,” separate from violent gangs, often are responsible. While some of the lingering social and economic problems of the county cry out for leadership, this one, fortunately, has gotten under the right people’s skin.

State Sen. John R. Lewis (R-Orange) wants to make graffiti convictions grounds for teen-agers losing driver’s licenses. He also has proposals for requiring violators to clean up and for parents to participate or pay a fine. The county supervisors took their own step by forming a task force. This includes proposals from Dist. Atty. Michael R. Capizzi, who also wants to require community service and restitution payments from offenders or parents.

The problem, of course, is catching the culprits. But the crime itself is one that offers a ready-made opportunity to make the punishment fit the offense: Make violators apply their own elbow grease. Involving parents makes sense in some cases, too.

While the attention of Sacramento is welcome, this probably is a problem best tackled locally, as the district attorney proposes. Santa Ana, for example, spent an estimated $1 million last year for graffiti removal. That’s too high a price, and so is the demoralizing proliferation of this visual pollution. The resolve to crack down on this nuisance deserves support.