Public pen and paint Asbo ban for 'Smokey' the graffiti artist

A graffiti artist has been banned from carrying paint or any form of marker pen in public, police said today.

Dominic Luke-Clarke, who daubed walls and buses with his tag name "Smokey", was handed a three year anti-social behaviour order at Nottingham Magistrates' Court yesterday.

The order bans him from spraying graffiti anywhere in England and Wales.

As well as being forbidden from carrying paint in public, he is also banned from carrying ink, dye or liquid polish.

But the unemployed 22-year-old from Radford, Nottingham, is allowed to keep paint at his home so he will be able to continue with his plans to train as a decorator.

Sergeant Paul Edwards-Cleaves said Luke-Clarke was caught twice spraying his tag name last year during a clampdown on graffiti artists by the city's authorities.

Sgt Edwards-Cleaves said: "Graffiti makes areas appear neglected and that gives a bad impression of our city which we don't want to give to visitors and residents."

Nottingham City Council said it had a budget of £500,000 to deal with graffiti this financial year. Last year, it spent £250,000 removing 70,000sq metres of graffiti.

Councillor Katrina Bull, who is charge of the environment portfolio at the authority, said: "Even a small amount of graffiti can misrepresent a neighbourhood's image - even more so if the graffiti is racist or otherwise particularly offensive."