FULLERTON : $500 Reward Given in Graffiti Arrest

A school maintenance worker is the first person to get a $500 reward from the city for helping convict a graffiti vandal.

James Navarrette, 34, in April noticed a teen-age boy etch graffiti on a light pole, called the police and pointed out the vandal, who had gone into a nearby fast-food restaurant with some friends, according to the Police Department.

Police said they arrested a 16-year-old boy at the restaurant who had an etching tool in his pocket. The tool was covered with metal and paint chips that matched paint on the light pole, police said.

The youth later was convicted of graffiti vandalism in county Family Court and assigned to perform 180 hours of community service, according to the police.

The City Council gave Navarrette his reward at last week’s meeting. A Fullerton resident, Navarrette works for the Fullerton School District.

The $500 reward is part of a comprehensive anti-graffiti program passed by the council in February that includes an ordinance holding parents financially accountable for damage caused by their children. Those convicted of graffiti vandalism can also lose their driver’s licenses for up to a year.

The program has helped stem the spray-paint tide, police said.

“We have seen a decrease in the tagging,” said Sgt. Joe Klein, gang unit supervisor. “There’s a community outcry against this tagging. It’s no longer being treated as a low-key prank.”

Even taggers have called the Police Department about the reward program, said Sgt. Glenn Deveney. “A lot of the gang kids were really interested in this, because they wanted to rat on each other,” he said.

To report an act of graffiti vandalism in progress, call the Police Department at (714) 738-6715.