Written by me; sources numerous news feeds and articles.
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Los Angeles-based "street artist" and graffiti vandal turned himself in to Detroit police. He is charged with felony malicious destruction of property.
Fairey designed Obama's iconic "hope" poster, which itself was widely pasted without permission on private and public property throughout the country.
Fairey faced a civil lawsuit because he had "stolen" the Obama face shot used in modified form as the poster. He got in more trouble by perjuring himself in court documents and lying to his lawyer about the origin of the original photo. He settled with the rights-holder for an undisclosed amount of money.
Fairey did not face vandalism charges over the Hope poster because he did not directly do the defacement.
The current charges include allegations that Fairey had posters pasted throughout Detroit on both public and private property. The glue can cause damage and the posters deface the property. The charges specifically list 14 buildings, but Fairey is believed to have defaced "hundreds" of buildings and walls.
The posters and glue are difficult to remove and the removal can itself cause damage.
Fairey had been arrested at LAX after returning from Europe, when screeners noticed the outstanding warrant. He was released and allowed to travel to Detroit to surrender to authorities.
Fairey may have been using a promotional scheme perfected by vandal Robbie Conal of Los Angeles. Conal and his followers have defaced "thousands" of walls and buildings in Los Angeles and New York City with Conal's crude sketchy posters criticizing non-L*****t political figures and business leaders.
Conal's massive vandalism, which he has pursued for years, made him well-known, allowing him to sell his artwork in galleries at high prices.
Conal brags about his vandalism on his website
www.robbieconal.com . The site also features photos and videos of Conal and his followers doing the vandalism.
Conal recently issued an Email diatribe claiming that Fairey's law-breaking "enhanced the image of Detroit" and criticizing the arrest.
Although Conal has publicized his own illegal postering, he appears to have never been charged in his main target of Los Angeles. Art critics have speculated as to why he is "immune" from legal problems, with the most common guess that high-level authorities have given a "hands off" order to the LAPD because they sympathize with Conal's L*****t views.
It is not clear whether the arrest of Fairey by Detroit police may embarrass Los Angeles authorities by causing questions about the refusal to arrest Conal. Especially in light of Conal's open boasting on his website.