Posted On: January 18, 2010
CALIFORNIA CRIMINAL DEFENSE: IS A SCHOOL A PUBLIC PLACE?
IS SCHOOL A PUBLIC PLACE?
California Penal Code sec. 594.1(e)(1) makes it a crime for anyone under 18 to possess an
aerosol paint container for the purpose of defacing property while in any public place. The minor here was at school. Is this a public place?
Of course not, try walking into any public school these days, you'd be stopped instantly and barred from admission. To make this defendant lose, this California Court of Appeal launches into a wacko discussion of what "public place" means, defining it, I kid you not, as "a place in which the public has an interest," and says that keeping schools free of graffiti is a matter of
public interest. Give me a break.
In re Miguel H.; 2010 DJ DAR 611; DJ, 1/14/10; C/A 2nd, Div. 7
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