Caught!
Recent television and Internet news that tagger Sean Robert Taylor (pictured) walked away from a Western Australian court with a 12 months sentence (suspended for 18 months) has made headlines across Australia and Internet news services. The twenty-year-old tagger narrowly avoided prison for causing approximately $23, 000 worth of damage to a Perth council property. Taylor was instead fined $500 and 100 hours of community service because of previous vandalism (most probably tagging) related offenses. Perth Magistrate Stephen Malley stated that his main concern while sentencing was that a stay in prison could damage Taylor’s emotional and maturity development.
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Recent television and Internet news that tagger Sean Robert Taylor (pictured) walked away from a Western Australian court with a 12 months sentence (suspended for 18 months) has made headlines across Australia and Internet news services. The twenty-year-old tagger narrowly avoided prison for causing approximately $23, 000 worth of damage to a Perth council property. Taylor was instead fined $500 and 100 hours of community service because of previous vandalism (most probably tagging) related offenses. Perth Magistrate Stephen Malley stated that his main concern while sentencing was that a stay in prison could damage Taylor’s emotional and maturity development.
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Magistrate Malley noted that even though Sean Taylor’s offences were serious and should warrant a stay in prison, placing him in a facility that was full of convicted criminals with harsher crimes may leave 20-year-old Taylor at the beck-and-call of inmates that could possibly use him for interesting prison sporting activities.
The Cleaning Bill:
The Cleaning Bill:
Western Australia in 2002 had an expensive hard slog with the combined graffiti clean-up bill for a number of councils revealed as nearly $1.7 million. The Hobart City Council in 2009, reported annual tag cleaning cost in excess of $70 000. Interesting fodder for thought, GRAFFITIdawg lives in Hobart and current Tasmanian legislation does not provide specific laws on offences related to the acts of graffiti and tagging as vandalism but refer to them as Marking Graffiti, anyone caught carrying or using Graffiti Implements (spray-cans, stencils and so on) without a lawful excuse can be prosecuted .
Side effects and Considerations:
Understandably, with this current sentencing, how would you define graffiti? What factors would make you think it was vandalism? Which factors would make you think it was art or social comment or social destructive behaviour? These are just some of the questions that the Magistrate may have considered when deciding the sentence of Taylor. In the state of NewSouth Wales, graffiti is considered a crime (considered vandalism) punishable by fines, community service orders or even imprisonment. In August 2011, NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell stated that he would apply a blowtorch to upper house Members of Parliament to get harsher new anti graffiti legislation passed.
Understandably, with this current sentencing, how would you define graffiti? What factors would make you think it was vandalism? Which factors would make you think it was art or social comment or social destructive behaviour? These are just some of the questions that the Magistrate may have considered when deciding the sentence of Taylor. In the state of NewSouth Wales, graffiti is considered a crime (considered vandalism) punishable by fines, community service orders or even imprisonment. In August 2011, NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell stated that he would apply a blowtorch to upper house Members of Parliament to get harsher new anti graffiti legislation passed.
Personal Consideration and The Fear Effect:
If you consider graffiti and tagging vandalism then vandalism can cost some communities many things in many ways, not just in the financial outlay to fix or prevent tagging and some forms of graffiti but also in creating the emotional fear of crime associated with the supposed destructive nature of young people who participate in the activity. Some people see graffiti as just another form of vandalism. For others, graffiti is self-expression, art, political comment or within a peer group: socially provoked action.
Reference.
If you consider graffiti and tagging vandalism then vandalism can cost some communities many things in many ways, not just in the financial outlay to fix or prevent tagging and some forms of graffiti but also in creating the emotional fear of crime associated with the supposed destructive nature of young people who participate in the activity. Some people see graffiti as just another form of vandalism. For others, graffiti is self-expression, art, political comment or within a peer group: socially provoked action.
Reference.
