Police make arrest in effort to squash ‘tagging’

    Eighteen-year-old Tyler Scott Monson, of Clear Lake, has been charged by the Clear Lake Police Department with Criminal Mischief and Trespassing in connection with vandalism to a billboard sign owned by Lamar Outdoor Advertising of Cedar Rapids.
    The billboard sign is located on South 24th Street in Clear Lake.
    The charges against Monson allege that on or about May 17, 2008  Monson spray painted graffiti on a billboard owned by Lamar Outdoor Advertising causing $640 in damages.
    The charge of Criminal Mischief in the third degree is an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail or two years in prison and up to $6,250 in fines. The second charge of Trespassing is a serious misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and $1,875 in fines.
    According to Police Chief Greg Peterson, graffiti has resulted in thousands of dollars in damages to the residents of Clear Lake when their buildings and other property are spray painted.
    “Graffiti also costs the residents of Clear Lake when public property becomes the target for ‘taggers’.  Tagging is a property crime that costs innocent people time and money; no different than say a theft. We will vigorously investigate the crime of graffiti in Clear Lake and we will prosecute those responsible to the fullest extent of the law,” said the Chief.