Graffiti artists beware: solar-powered camera is on

The tamper-proof mobile device has been tested in areas where police have received complaints.

By JOSE DE JESUS

REGISTER STAFF WRITER

Des. Moines, Iowa

November 24, 2005

Des Moines police have a solar-powered camera to help detectives crack down on graffiti artists and other lawbreakers. The FlashCAM-770 uses a motion detector and employs an automated voice to let lawbreakers know they have been caught red-handed, Sgt. Todd Dykstra said.

The tamper-proof mobile camera has been tested in areas where police have received numerous complaints about graffiti and theft. Graffiti "is a big concern for us, and for the citizens in Des Moines," Dykstra said. Dykstra said most graffiti involves teens and young adults, and most of it is gang-related.

The California-made device [Q-Star Technology] was recently deployed for a week in the 1800 block of Guthrie Avenue and between Sheridan and New York streets.

Scott Denning, owner of DELS Machining at 2018 E. Walnut St., said he has been targeted with graffiti about 10 times since he purchased his business three years ago.

"I think twice before putting so much money into my property," he said. "If it's going to look like garbage all the time, why put more money into it?"

Denning is one of many business owners who have complained to the Fairgrounds Neighborhood Association about graffiti, said Dawn Jorgensen, the group's president.

"It's a big issue, because it keeps happening over and over again," she said. "Money that they can be spending to upgrade their business is being spent in paint." Denning said it cost him about $125 for each graffiti attack he's had to eliminate.

Sam Holt, owner of Holt Sales and Service, said his business at 2000 E. Walnut St. has been targeted five times this year. "It's gotten so bad that we've been spraying paint over it rather than doing it properly," Holt said. "There are some young kids that are out to cause a little trouble."

Last summer Des Moines police introduced a graffiti hot line and urged residents to call in tips. "It's a good tool that we have to give us information on who they believe may be doing this graffiti," Dykstra said. The hot line has yielded a few arrests.

"It's kind of a hit-and-run action and nobody really sees them," said Dykstra, who added that offenders can be ticketed or jailed depending on the amount of damage.

"The thing with graffiti is it's a hard crime to solve and it happens and affects a lot of people," he said. "It's still a big problem, and we are addressing it."

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