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Not Without My Spray Paint or Markers
By
Jen Chung
Published May 2, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published May 2, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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It's Marc Ecko 2, City of New York 0! After suing the city last week over the law that now prevents people between 18 and 21 from carrying wide-tip markers or spray paint, a federal judge ruled that the law has no "rational basis." The city is supposed to stop enforcing the law on Thursday at 5PM. However, the part of the law that prevents people between 18 and 21 to buy etching acids, which are tools in scratchitti, is still in effect. Scratchitti is considered one of the most annoying scourges in the subway system these days, as most train windows are covered with it. Last week, the NY Times reported that the NYC Transit was looking into putting Mylar on all the windows, but it was unclear whether or not they'd do it (what with the money it'd take and how well it would work).
The city will appeal: City Councilman Peter Vallone sniffed to amNew York, "Its unfortunate the these kids are being used as pawns by corporations in pursuit of profits. This is a minor bump in the road to a cleaner city. We haven't presented our case and once we do I'm sure the judge will see the necessity for this law."
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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