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Vandalism prompts Detroit court to prohibit pens, pencils

Posted at 1:35 AM, May 13, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-13 01:36:18-04

DETROIT (AP) — A court in Detroit is prohibiting people from bringing in pens, pencils and markers after recent vandalism.

36th District Court Administrator Kelli Moore Owen tells The Detroit News that murals featuring the city’s skyline and symbols of justice went up last week. She says that days later court staff began complaining they were being marked up.

Moore Owen noted Wednesday that it’s a “sudden change,” but she wants people to “respect the building and not vandalize.”

The newspaper says the new policy will be in place indefinitely. Moore Owen says attorneys and members of the press with proper credentials will be excluded from the policy.

Writing instruments join an already extensive list of items the public is barred from bringing into the courthouse, including guns, cellphones and alcohol.