US man faces 13 years in jail for writing on banks’ sidewalks

A 40-year-old man goes on trial in the United States and faces 13 years in prison for writing in chalk his opinions in front of three Bank of America branches in San Diego, California.

The jury deliberations in the trial of Jeffrey David Olson, charged with 13 misdemeanor vandalism counts, began on Friday, KPBS reports. He could spend 13 years in jail if convicted of all charges.

Olson’s lawyer, Tom Tosdal, said there is no evidence that Olson wrote anything offensive, adding that vandalism law requires that jurors find something was “maliciously defaced.”

“His purpose was not malicious. His purpose was to inform,” Tosdal said.

On several occasions from February to August 2012, Olson expressed his anger at the financial crisis of 2008 and the federal bailout that ensued by writing in chalk on the sidewalk of the banks.

“No Thanks, Big Banks” and “Shame on Bank of America” were among the messages he wrote.

The messages were “always on city sidewalks, washable chalk, never crude messages, never vulgar, clearly topical,” Olson told a local CBS network.

Mayor Bob Filner has condemned the City Attorney’s Office over the prosecution of Olson.

Following the financial collapse of 2008 that was triggered by big banks and other financial institutions, the U.S. government issued federal bailouts, giving the “too big to fail” institutions more than $700 billion to shield them from bankruptcy.