Dear Editor:

With vandalism occurring at Downey Cemetery for the second time in mid-January of 2018, these acts show similarities to those actions taken of September 2017, where the cemetery was vandalized for the first time. The acts of vandalism took place throughout the cemetery and caused damage to many old and historical tombstones. 

The City Council had no countermeasures presented nor did they place any to reduce the vandalism from happening again in the future. The cemetery is dated to have been established in the late 1860’s, making it an important part of Downey’s history, it must be preserved and should be prioritized and addressed by the City Council.

Simple measures to can be put into place to assist with the minimization and prevention of future vandalism, such as; active patrol of city police in the area, the temporary placement of sensor lighting, lastly a more effective but costly measure could be the hiring of a night guard to provide deterrent and act proactively rather than reactively.

Alexis Larios
Downey