Three young Washington teenagers could face up to ten years in jail after being arrested for leaving skid marks on an LGBT rainbow mural while riding electric scooters.
Ruslan Turko, 19, and two unidentified minors were arrested Wednesday for vandalizing the rainbow pride mural in front of Riverfront Park in Spokane, Washington, for first-degree misconduct.
Turko appeared in court accompanied by his lawyer. Prosecutors requested a $15,000 bond that would cover the approximate cost of repainting the mural. The teenager was later released on his own responsibility on the condition that he does not return to the crosswalk, nor do the other suspects.
Young people will go to jail for skating on an LGBT mural
The youths were caught after a group of witnesses who were in a nearby bar saw them skating on the mural, revving their Lime e-scooters and intentionally running their tires over the mural to create skid marks.
Court records cite witnesses confronting the teens, some of them taking photos with their phones. The city said they had just finished repainting the mural when the boys allegedly vandalized it.
Lime, the company that creates the electric scooters, was appalled by the incident and issued a statement Friday expressing support for the LGBT community. “All of us at Lime condemn these vile acts without a doubt. At a time when our teams at Lime are kicking off pride celebrations around the world, it’s disturbing to see the hate taking place in Spokane.”
“Lime is taking immediate action against youth and reaffirming our support for Spokane Pride and the Arts of Spokane. Lime is proud to dedicate time and resources to celebrating Pride Month each year and supporting LGBTQ+ organizations working to uplift and protect queer people in cities around the world. We will not allow the hate-filled few to ruin the joy of Pride Month in Spokane and we are grateful for those who work to make Spokane more welcoming to all.”
The company also said they are implementing a no-drive zone around the mural to protect it from future vandalism attempts.
This article was written originally in Spanish by Miguel Fernandez in Cultura Colectiva
