2 teens investigated after painting over rainbow crosswalk

MEDFIELD, Mass. — The community of Medfield is coming together after an act of vandalism.

A rainbow-colored crosswalk at the high school will need to be repainted after two teens defaced it Wednesday night.

Police said the teens then shared photos of the vandalism on Snapchat. One picture showed one of the teens believed to be responsible for the vandalism with the caption “doing the world a favour.” A second picture had the caption “see-ya rainbow” and included the other teen’s face.

“You could hold signs you could do whatever you could spread your message, but they just decided to buy paint for it and they didn't even buy enough, and in their Snapchat post, they didn't even spell everything correctly, which is just disappointing,” 2017 graduate Evan Springer said.

The crosswalk was initially painted rainbow last month by the National Art Honor Society and the Harmony Club, a student-run LGBT support group.

“We all worked so hard to paint it ourselves and it's crazy to see something like this happen in Medfield,” 2017 graduate Sam Caira said.

Medfield Police Chief Bob Meaney said both vandals have been identified, and right now his department is working with the Norfolk County District Attorney's office to determine the appropriate charges.

“Social media, one of the finest double-edge swords ever created by man, has prevailed in this one.  It also creates a lot of angst and a lot hurt sometimes too,” Meaney said.

Since the vandalism, teens and adults have been writing messages of support for the LGBT community in chalk, and the rainbow crosswalk is expected to be re-painted as soon as Friday.

Cox Media Group