As the temperature rises and people begin to spend more time outdoors, Assemblyman Hevesi would like to remind residents to be alert and aware of graffiti in their neighborhoods. Instances of graffiti rise in the summer and the Assemblyman is urging citizens to report it when they see it.

Often, graffiti goes unreported because citizens assume that someone has already informed authorities of its existence. Contrary to this belief, the 104th Precinct in Ridgewood, NY stated that of the hundreds of graffiti cases handled by the precinct in 2010, only 29 of them resulted from a citizen’s report. The vast majority of graffiti cases were generated by officers within the precinct filing reports.

Graffiti should be reported to authorities when it is sighted by calling 311, their local police precinct, or their elected officials. Only if citizens witness a perpetrator tagging graffiti should they call 911.

“I urge all of the constituents in my district to be vigilant in tackling graffiti,” Assemblyman Hevesi said. “These numbers clearly show that our previous assumption about graffiti being reported is not true, we need to become much more diligent in reporting this eyesore when it appears in our neighborhood.”