Over the past decade, Marc Meadowcroft vandalized buildings from coast to coast with graffiti. But since being arrested for tagging multiple buildings and fences in Cody last year, Meadowcroft said he’s changed his ways: He’s instead been creating paid artwork for businesses, started a tattoo apprenticeship and begun volunteering in his hometown of Cheyenne.

At a hearing in Park County District Court last week, Meadowcroft said he wants to give back to the community, “because I am realizing what I have done to not only, you know, Cody, but the state of Wyoming — and then not only myself, but my family as well.”

“So it’s been quite the change, quite the 360 in my life,” the 29-year-old said, asking to be placed on probation for his felony property destruction in Cody.

The prosecution countered that, given his long history of vandalism, Meadowcroft deserved six months of jail time for the thousands of dollars worth of damage he caused in Cody. However, District Court Judge Bill Simpson was persuaded that Meadowcroft had gotten the message from what was his first-ever felony conviction. The judge imposed five years of supervised probation and ordered Meadowcroft to pay $3,050 to clean up the graffiti.

If Meadowcroft breaks the law or otherwise violates the terms of his probation, he could face three to five years of prison time.

Prior offenses

Media accounts and court records indicate that Meadowcroft’s history of graffiti dates back to at least 2014. They say he’s spray painted everything from vintage trolleys and a courtroom bathroom in Massachusetts, to a Times Square billboard to street signs in Cheyenne. He generally painted his signature tag of “ciga” or “cigar.”

At the Oct. 14 sentencing, Simpson ticked through Meadowcroft’s prior convictions in Boston, New York City, Denver, Portland and Kansas City.

“Is there any location I’ve missed where you [have] been involved in this type of activity?” Simpson asked.

“That’s it, your honor,” Meadowcroft said.

“What about Miami-Dade County, Florida?” Simpson pressed.

“That is one as well,” Meadowcroft acknowledged, though “it was more of a loitering charge.” He added that he thought there was another case in California, but said he’d been working to resolve his other pending court cases while out on bond in his Park County case.

The Cody crime

Meadowcroft vandalized multiple Cody properties late one night in October 2024. Court records say he tagged a fence behind the Maverik gas station on 17th Street, a nearby brick building and a concrete step behind the Boot Barn. And in the city’s downtown area, Meadowcroft left his mark on city dumpsters, the Cowboy Palace, the Cody Dug-up Gun Museum and a trailer behind Sunlight Sports.

Cody police used surveillance footage and Meadowcroft’s well-documented association with the “ciga” tag to connect him to the crime — along with the fact that an officer happened to pull Meadowcroft over that night and spotted a spray paint can in his Chevy.

Meadowcroft was arrested in Illinois in December and brought back to Cody to face the felony count of property destruction.

After spending 21 days in the Park County Detention Center, he was released on a $10,000 surety bond.

As the case progressed, the county attorney’s office insisted Meadowcroft receive a felony conviction and refused to agree to probation; defense attorney Tim Blatt said his client initially couldn’t understand why.

“And I said, and it just so happens that … the county that finally said ‘enough’s enough’ was Park County,” Blatt recalled.

He advised Meadowcroft that he’d need to change his life prior to sentencing — and in court last week, Blatt argued that Meadowcroft had done so.

‘Clear and focused’

Meadowcroft indicated that drug use played “a big role” in his actions, and said he’s been regularly attending and even leading Narcotics Anonymous meetings over the past months. He’s also been volunteering to help veterans and animals and with clean-ups of Cheyenne while landing paid jobs to paint murals and window decorations around the city.

Cheyenne artist Harvey Deselms, who’s served as a mentor to Meadowcroft in recent years, said he’d been impressed with his growth since being released from the Park County Detention Center.

Meadowcroft’s older sister added that she’s never seen him “as clear and focused on improving his life and giving back to the community.”

“He’s truly realized, on a deeper level, the damage that he’s done and [is] taking steps to actually fix it,” she told the court.

Given Meadowcroft’s turnaround, Blatt argued that sending him to jail could represent a setback.

“I think he’s made such positive strides that he’s earned an opportunity to be placed on probation …,” Blatt said.

However, Deputy Park County Prosecuting Attorney Larry Eichele said the sheer number of past convictions — spread across multiple states and a long period of time — justified a jail sentence.

“... it is time to get Mr. Meadowcroft’s attention,” Eichele said, “and I think that a six-month jail sentence would be the ticket.”

Bob Newsome, the owner of a couple downtown buildings that were tagged by Meadowcroft, submitted a statement ahead of the hearing that said he wanted to make sure the defendant was held accountable and indicated jail time would be an appropriate way to change behavior.

As for Judge Simpson, he said he’d already witnessed a change in Meadowcroft since the case began.

“It’s a very serious thing, and I think you realize that now, and I’m glad that you do,” Simpson said, “because honestly, I think your behavior was going to be that, if you walked out of Park County without a felony, you’d probably just go right about your business — travel the different states, counties, communities, tag various businesses [and] cause them heartburn.”

While some people might consider it to be a form of art, the graffiti in this case was really just property destruction and vandalism, the judge added.

“It seems like a harmless crime, but you know, it’s not, because people are on the other end of it,” he said, “and that’s what I want to communicate to you, OK? Your actions have consequences.”

Simpson directed Meadowcroft to write letters of apology to the impacted property owners within 30 days.

Uncertain cleanup

Meadowcroft told the court he would like to remove the graffiti he’d left behind in Cody.

“I’d love to pay for all the materials and remove it all,” he said, noting that in some other communities, his graffiti remains in place a decade later.

Simpson initially went along with that plan, directing Meadowcroft to get the Cody graffiti cleaned up within 90 days and to also pay $3,050 in restitution to cover the cost of cleaning up a few of the properties.

However, Eichele argued that order was “unenforceable.” Given that the restitution is meant to cover the property owners’ costs of removing graffiti, he said the judge couldn’t also make Meadowcroft clean it up. In response, Simpson only ordered the $3,050 in restitution, which will cover the damage to Newsome’s buildings — the Cowboy Palace and Cody Dug-up Gun Museum — and property owned by Sunlight Sports.

The other property owners didn’t submit requests for restitution, Eichele said in an email. As a result, those owners may need to handle their graffiti on their own.