APD working to combat vandalism at MLK Park

By ROB LARSON
Daily Press Staff Writer
Resulting from the number of vandalism reports at Artesia’s Martin Luther King Jr. Park in the past few months, Commander Lindell Smith of the Artesia Police Department said the APD has begun directing a great deal of focus toward the park in hopes of bringing its mistreatment to a close.
“Over the past few months, we’ve received quite a few reports of people trashing the park,” Smith said. “People are leaving trash on the ground, cutting and putting graffiti on the awnings that go over the tables, smashing the porcelain fixtures in the bathrooms which caused flooding, and more. So things like that cause us to concentrate on the area.” … For the rest of the story, subscribe in print and on the web.
Smith said the APD has begun and will continue to do heavy surveillance and close patrolling of the park grounds. They have also dedicated the last half of a saturation patrol – in which a group of police officers closely survey a small, distinct location or area – solely to the park.