Charges have yet to be filed in the case of a vandal who painted images in national parks including Crater Lake, Yosemite, and Zion/Screen grab via Modern Hiker
The investigation into a case of vandalism that left painted images on rock outcrops in at least eight Western national parks is continuing with charges yet to be brought in the case, National Park Service officials say.
Though a 21-year-old woman identified by the Park Service last October as the prime suspect has been cooperating with officials, the complexity of the case has been behind the delay in charges being filed, Park Service spokesman Jeff Olson told the Traveler via email Thursday.
"We became aware of the violations October 21, 2014, and immediately opened a criminal investigation. The United States Attorney's Office has been involved with the investigation from its onset," Mr. Olson said. "A suspect was immediately identified and interviewed within a week. The suspect is cooperating with investigators. Thousands of pieces of evidence are being examined.
"Investigation of natural resource crimes, by their nature, take time. Crime scenes must be identified, located, accessed, processed, and damage assessments conducted," he added "After the investigation and documentation is complete, a referral is made to the United States Attorney's Office for a determination on prosecution. It is not uncommon for this process to take years."
The case was brought to public light a bit earlier in October by bloggers who tracked the crimes via photos on an Instagram account that documented paintings scattered throughout the park system. National Park Service investigators confirmed that images were painted on rocks and boulders in Yosemite National Park, Death Valley National Park, and Joshua Tree National Park, all in California; Rocky Mountain National Park and Colorado National Monument, both in Colorado; Crater Lake National Park, in Oregon; Zion National Park and Canyonlands National Park, both in Utah.
The woman used the nom de plume "creepytings" on her Social Media accounts that displayed some of her images. With strokes of blue, white, brown and red paint, as well as markers, she sketched faces for all to see. A bald-headed face with a snake for a tongue was apparently painted on a rock near the Mist Trail in Yosemite. Another of a blue-haired dude appears on an outcrop with Crater Lake in the distance, while another face -- with zig-zagging lines not unlike those you might see on prehistoric rock art -- is said to have been placed on a rock atop Telescope Peak in Death Valley.
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Comments
I'd sooner they got it right than they got it right now.
Just want to avoid legal schenanigans.
Quite a bit more complicated than the typical vandalism case due to the number of locations involved - and that means coordination with multiple U. S. Attorney's offices. Those offices typically have many more cases than they can handle, and agencies often have to "get in line" for the prosecutor's time. Rick B is correct - now that the prime suspect has been identified, the key is to get this one right by having all the bases covered.
Thanks for the update and please keep watching this. Considering all the complications, it might be tempting to just let her plead to a minor charge and fade from public view. Plus, investigators need to make sure there were not other people involved either by going with her, or at least providing support while knowing what she was doing. Vandalizing such amazing public property should bring severe and highly publicized consequences. I'm thinking high-dollar fines to help pay for the cleanup and lots of mandatory public service picking up cigarette butts, cleaning pit toilets, grooming trails, etc.
Yea-- I especially like the cleaning pit toilets thing--- a few weeks of that and there would be no more artistry for sure....
Any updates to this?
Don't go doing the Liberal, bleeding heart thing and let her off with a minor charge and "fade away". What? LIke nothing ever happened? The woman did SERIOUS, EXPENSIVE-TO-CLEAN-UP DAMAGE! She deserves to pay for ALL of the cleanup and do a few thousand hours of other community service! Stop horsing around with this case. Put othere less serious cases on hold as this one is more of an emergency and probably far more costly damage too.
I am certainly no legal expert but this doesn't appear to be that complicated a case. That said, I agree with the sentiments of better to get it right than risk her going unpunished. I also hope that punishment is harsh enough to send a strong message.