Gov. Sandoval has signed Assembly Bill 244 into law. It will go into effect October 1st. This is the “Habitual Graffiti Violator Law” that we submitted for the 78th Session. It was designed to address our most important issue currently in graffiti enforcement: adult habitual graffiti vandals and gang members who continue to place graffiti regardless of multiple previous arrests and convictions for tagging.
In brief, this is what the new law will do: If an adult has two or more graffiti convictions (any level) the third and all subsequent arrests for placing graffiti will be an automatic Class D Felony (regardless of the amount of the damage), OR · If an adult already has a single felony graffiti conviction all subsequent arrests for placing graffiti will be an automatic Class D Felony (regardless of the amount of the damage).
Everything is retroactive. All existing adult convictions for placing graffiti prior to this passage count toward the felony. With the class D felony they will face 1-4 years in prison and a $5,000.00 fine. This will go along with the other mandatory graffiti penalties. Even if the violator is given probation they will still have to serve a mandatory ten day jail sentence as part of the probation. They’ll also lose their driver’s license, be required to pay restitution to the victim, and serve mandatory community service hours removing graffiti in the community (100 hours first offense, 200 for second, 300 for third and subsequent offenses).
In brief, this is what the new law will do: If an adult has two or more graffiti convictions (any level) the third and all subsequent arrests for placing graffiti will be an automatic Class D Felony (regardless of the amount of the damage), OR · If an adult already has a single felony graffiti conviction all subsequent arrests for placing graffiti will be an automatic Class D Felony (regardless of the amount of the damage).
Everything is retroactive. All existing adult convictions for placing graffiti prior to this passage count toward the felony. With the class D felony they will face 1-4 years in prison and a $5,000.00 fine. This will go along with the other mandatory graffiti penalties. Even if the violator is given probation they will still have to serve a mandatory ten day jail sentence as part of the probation. They’ll also lose their driver’s license, be required to pay restitution to the victim, and serve mandatory community service hours removing graffiti in the community (100 hours first offense, 200 for second, 300 for third and subsequent offenses).
