A trial finished this week in the case of a young man who was caught defacing one of Yellowstone National Park’s most famous structures.

"Dakota Tipton who is from Joshua, Texas, did appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Carman," park spokeswoman Charissa Reid said. "He was found guilty of vandalism and was ordered to serve three days in jail, pay a $250 restitution fee for repairs to the arch and $40 in court fees."

The arch in question is the Roosevelt Arch, the cornerstone of which was laid by President Theodore Roosevelt back in 1903. Tipton was caught defacing it back on June 10th of this year.

"A visitor observed Mr. Tipton carving his initials into the Roosevelt Arch, which is the iconic north entrance to Yellowstone National Park," Reid said. "I think he was really remorseful. What we're hoping is that this particular instance reminds all of our visitors that Yellowstone is not just a natural park, it's also a cultural park. It preserves a lot of western history."

Reid said that structural vandalism is fairly rare in the park and that it is more common to find vandals carving their initials into the microbial mats near hot springs. Both types of offenses can end with jail time and fines.

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