Orem police ask for community help in fight against graffiti

OREM — Police say more and more graffiti is being spotted in the city, and officials are asking for help stopping the illegal artwork from spreading.

"We are seeing an increase," said Orem Police Sgt. Bill Young, who is part of Orem's detective division. "In other parts of the country it's a battle. The question we ask is, 'Are we winning?' We want to start now and hit it real hard."

Incidents of criminal mischief, which includes graffiti, in Orem went up from 1,223 in 2005 to 1,385 last year and are projected to surpass that for 2007, officials say.

Young, who spent three years with the Utah County Major Crimes Task Force, will now be leading the fight against gang activity and graffiti in Orem.

"Our goal is to see if we can slow down and stop a lot of it, to see if we can't turn some youth around," Young said. "We're trying to make our community safer and make a difference in the life of a young person."

And stopping graffiti starts with increased awareness of neighbors and parents.

Noticing late-night crowds or suspicious behavior is one way to combat the aerosol artwork, Young said.

"We have solved more than a few graffiti cases by simply checking out suspicious persons reported to us by someone who had the courage to call," said Orem Police Lt. Doug Edwards.

Both Edwards and Young encourage anyone who notices something suspicious to report it. "People are often reluctant to call the police because they fear officers will find nothing and think them foolish for having called," Edwards said. "That is certainly not the case and we're asking the public to call."

Orem's Police Dispatch can be reached at 229-7070.

Parents are also a vital link in preventing graffiti.

"(Parents need) to be aware of it and ... help us stop it and break that cycle. I just don't think we can do it by ourselves," Young said.

Often, children or teenagers will sketch their "artwork" in notebooks before they "throw it up" on a wall, a fence or a concrete barrier, Young said.

If parents are aware of what their child is doodling, as well as how they're dressing and who they're hanging out with, that may lead to helpful talks to prevent graffiti. Young also makes home visits should a parent want some legal backup.

But just becomes someone paints walls doesn't mean they're a gang member. There are actually two types of street artwork — tagging and gang-related graffiti.