Citizens and law enforcement officials in Selma agree that two new pieces of state legislation dealing with graffiti are positive steps to deal with what’s considered a local and statewide problem.

“I think it’s another tool to use against the expanding graffiti trend,� said Selma Police Chief Tom Whiteside.

The laws, which were signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on July 30, have different goals but have a similar message: to show those who commit graffiti vandalism the costs and damages caused by their actions.

The first law, Assembly Bill 2609, calls for amending the penal code for vandalism. This changes the law so that a person who is convicted of vandalism — and subsequently put on parole — would be ordered by a court to clean up, replace or repair the piece of property they damaged. The second part of this law says that an offender could also be required to keep the piece of property they damaged — or another specified piece of property — free of graffiti for up to a year. Still, there are exceptions within this law.

The second piece of legislation, known as Assembly Bill 1767, creates a pilot program in San Francisco which would require someone found guilty of graffiti vandalism to complete a minimum of 24 hours of community service. This service would consist solely of abating graffiti in the city.

For his part, Whiteside said he thinks the first graffiti law is an effective tool not only for law enforcement, but for the offender as well.

“I think by having to clear up the mess they would realize how much effort and cost is involved in cleaning up after them,� he said.

However, Whiteside said such a program for those on parole would need supervision.

As for the second part of that law — which could require the offender to keep the property they damaged free from graffiti for up to a year — Whiteside said he believes Schwarzeneggar felt that would give additional leverage to the law in order to put more accountability on taggers.

Still, Whiteside said, these pieces of legislation are still in their infancy.

“I think it has some worthwhile potential, I just think it’s too early to tell how it’s all going to work out,� he said.

According to Whiteside, the Selma Public Works Department is in charge of abating graffiti that appears on public property. For graffiti on private property, Selma’s code enforcement office works with private property owners to deal with the situation.

Whiteside said the city, along with a handful of interested citizens, are currently exploring ways to expand and enhance graffiti abatement in Selma.

Their aim is to have a graffiti abatement program that would eradicate graffiti tags — both on public and private property — within 24 hours of their appearance.

Although it remains to be seen when that will happen, Whiteside said he’s interested in potentially having graffiti offenders in Selma serve their court-ordered abatement requirement under the supervision of this future program.

A handful of citizens in Selma, who were asked their opinions on the laws, seem to agree they’re a good idea.

Coreen Johnson said she agrees with the first part of AB 2609, which requires paroled offenders to clean up, repair or replace the property they have damaged. But she said whoever has their property damaged should also be able to have a say on whether or not the work is adequate.

Still, Johnson said, she questions the second part of that law. She doesn’t think that an offender should have to keep the piece of property they damaged graffiti-free for up to a year.

“Once you’ve paid the price for your crime, you’re done,� she said.

As for the pilot program in San Francisco, Johnson said the program would potentially be a good idea for Selma, but only if it constructively helps the offender learn about the error of their behavior.

Annie Montes, a Kingsburg resident who works in Selma, also agrees with the first part of AB 2609.

She thinks that if an offender has to go out and take care of the vandalism themselves, they’ll realize how much work it takes to get it cleaned up.

“There has to be a point where you need to hold them accountable,� Montes said.

Montes also believes the parents of younger offenders need to be held accountable to a certain extent. Still, she said, she’s not sure how easy it would be for an offender’s parent to foot the bill if their child had to replace vandalized property.

Montes agrees that it would be worth a try in Selma someday, but only if it’s shown to work, she said.

Teens in the area have also weighed in on the discussion. Kingsburg High senior Tyler Wood believes that the perpetrators should be held liable for their actions.

“If they get caught, then they gotta clean up what they did,� he said.

His friend Jacob Aslin, a senior at Selma’s Heartland Alternative School, agrees.

However, Aslin said he doesn’t agree with the second part of the first graffiti law.

“The farthest I’d go is to make them clean it up,� Aslin said. “I don’t think they should have to clean it up for a whole year.�

Aslin also disagrees with that part of the law because, he says, the piece of property that was vandalized and cleaned up could be vandalized by someone else, making it unfair to the person who initially cleaned up the property.

Both Aslin and Wood, who said they are skaters and are against tagging, also agree that the pilot program in San Francisco could be a worthy endeavor here in Selma.