from wicked local
Officials: Teen graffitied swastikas in Melrose
By Jessica Sacco
jsacco@wickedlocal.com
Posted Apr. 17, 2014 @ 7:32 pm
Updated at 8:15 PM
MELROSE
A high school student is facing consequences after authorities say he drew inappropriate images throughout Melrose Veterans Memorial Middle School (MVMMS).
Police identified a 17-year-old Melrose resident as the person responsible for swastikas and male genitalia that were graffitied at the middle school.
City Solicitor Rob Van Campen said the boy has been approved through the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office for the juvenile diversion program.
The course offers minors who are caught violating the law an opportunity to correct their behavior before they’re charged with a crime, meaning no arrest or summons has been made at this time.
Police received reports of tagging that occurred while the school was open on April 1, and began an investigation.
They worked with school officials, who were able to view video footage from MVMMS that depicted the Melrose High School student using a black marker to sketch images on the walls.
"You see the person in the video draw on the walls," said Lt. Mark DeCroteau. "Most of the video is in the hallways."
The janitorial staff also found tagging in the first-floor bathroom and on a set of double wooden doors, which they photographed and then removed.
In an email to parents, MVMMS Principal Tom Brow wrote that students located additional graffiti and reported it to the main office so it could be removed.
Brow told the Free Press that while there’s almost a daily occurrence of some type of graffiti in the school, the staff always cleans it off as quickly as possible.
"If you leave graffiti up, it will spread," he said. "We’re very conscious about removing graffiti, so people don’t get idea that’s the accepted thing to do in [this] culture."
Police Chief Mike Lyle said it was because of the video recordings that the student was identified.
"Video surveillance was absolutely one of the key investigative tools used in apprehending the suspect," he said.
The city’s Human Rights Commission was later notified of the incident.
"Any time it comes to the city’s attention that there has been racist or anti-Semitic graffiti or anything discriminatory, nothing is taken more seriously," Mayor Rob Dolan said. "I want to commend the school department, the custodian that found the graffiti, as well as the Melrose Police Department and the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office for the thorough and professional manner that they have conducted this interview to identify the individual and bring the matter to a speedy conclusion for the community and for the victims."
"The earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization as well as the Mediterranean Classical Antiquity and paleolithic Europe. Swastikas have been used in various other ancient civilizations around the world including Turkic, India, Iran, Armenia, Nepal, China, Japan, Korea and Europe. It remains widely used in Indian religions, specifically in Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism, primarily as a tantric symbol that invokes Lakshmi - the Vedic goddess of wealth, prosperity and auspiciousness.
The word "swastika" comes from the Sanskrit svastika - "su" (meaning "good" or "auspicious") combined with "asti" (meaning "it is"), along with the diminutive suffix "ka." The swastika literally means "it is good." It is a common practice for Hindus to draw Swastika symbols on the doors and entrances to their houses during festivals, which is believed to symbolize an invitation to goddess Lakshmi."
Did the nitwit who painted this on the walls at the Middle School know this? What do you think?
Answer...NO! Of course this 17 year old was not aware of the history of swastikas,since you would have to be an idiot and uneducated to add graffiti on walls with video cameras present! Also given that he added other types of graffiti to the walls indicate that he was being malicious! This student should be immediately expelled as a harsh lesson to others that this sort of activity will never be tolerated. However, knowing our school department and city officials, and the current state of our culture, this will not be done and this student will probably return to class after his hands have been "slapped"!
If they can use video to figure out who's did the graffiti in the hallways, why can't they use it to narrow down the boys going in and out of the high school 2nd/3rd floor bathrooms that are writing the bomb threats?!
Maybe he's someone who has mental issues and needs help rather than anger.
To Bomb Threats......do you know how many kids use those bathrooms in a day? Since you don't know when the graffiti was written, it would be literally impossible to determine who specifically wrote them. Whereas actually having videotape of the person doing it is definitive evidence.
To Maybe.....it's a big stretch to assume that this person has mental issues although they will certainly determine this during the investigation of him. But doing what he did reeks of just plain stupidity, immaturity, and a lack of proper upbringing. Wouldn't be surprised to learn that he comes from a broken or dysfunctional home!
Does this mean the poster who is outraged over the drawing of the penises, will no longer be able to post their outrage about the drawing of the penises, because the penis drawer has been caught?
Because I was starting to think that that person just liked to type the word penis.....
Not at all "?". You should be able to continue with you penis commentary for as long (or short depending on your situation) as you have a hard position on penis' or penis drawings.
Don't bring the election into this. This forum can get very political when it doesn't have to.