Fairey could face jail for Boston graffiti

Shepard Fairey could face jail time for his, ahem, alleged graffiti in Boston after a Municipal Court judge decided yesterday that the vandalism charges against him could be treated as felonies instead of misdemeanors.

The Los Angeles artist, whose work is the focus of a major retrospective at Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art, faces as many as a dozen charges from Boston police. Treated as misdemeanors, Fairey could have been fined up to $100 per charge and ordered to pay restitution. Judge Eleanor Coe Sinnott’s ruling means that Fairey could now face up to three years in state prison for each felony charge.