DETROIT -- Two out-of-state graffiti artists were sentenced Tuesday to 60 days in the Wayne County Jail for spray-painting a vacant building.

Paul Alaga, 24, of North Highland, Calif., and Michael Welch, 28, of Lac Duflambeau, Wis., pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor vandalism charges in Wayne Circuit Court as part of an agreement in which felony charges for malicious destruction of property were dismissed.

Attorney Marlene Newton called the jail time excessive. She said she had advised the two men to reject an earlier plea agreement offer from the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office to identify fellow members of the underground graffiti community and testify against them.

"Not that they would, but I'd turn in my (Michigan Bar Association) card before I'd see my clients sign anything like that," Newton said.

Wayne County Prosecutor Michael Duggan has taken a strong stand against people who illegally spray-paint graffiti on buildings, calling such people "criminals."

Alaga and Welch were arrested and jailed on June 11 for illegally spray-painting a building in the 2600 block of West Grand. They will be in jail until Aug. 8, remain on probation for another year and clean up graffiti under the agreement accepted by Wayne Circuit Judge James Chylinski.

Welch and Alaga are known graffiti artists and were invited to Detroit to do murals on the Second Street Laundromat near Wayne State University.

"I love what they did on my building," said Milan Cronovich, owner of the laundromat at Second and Prentice "My building had been covered with bad writing."

You can reach Joy Colby at (313) 222-2276 or mailto:jcolby@detnews.com