Graffiti marking the grass at Joe Jachym Field includes an apparent senior class tag – “Seniors 2K14”, above, as well as (not pictured) racist and vulgar symbols. (Photo by Carl E. Hartdegen)
WESTFIELD – Westfield police are looking into vandalism at Joe Jachym Field after a city councilor brought graffiti on the grass – including symbols which appear to be racist, vulgar and topical – to their attention.
Ward 3 Councilor Brain Hoose reports that while walking his dog Thursday he noticed patterns of brown grass on the hillside adjacent to the baseball diamond at the Westfield Vocational-Technical High school playing fields.
Investigation revealed that a caustic fluid had apparently been applied to the hillside to kill the grass to make words and symbols appear as brown graffiti on the green turf.
The damage does not appear to be recent as the lawn appears to have been mowed since the grass was blighted and seeds and other small debris appear to be have settled atop of the chemically burned grass.
Most legible of the markings is a patch which appears to read “Seniors 2K14.”
Some of the markings are indecipherable but a swastika is obvious as is a phallic representation. A less obvious symbol may be a smiley face but others which may be words are not legible.
Police responded to Hoose’s complaint and an officer was detailed to investigate the vandalism.
