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Man Sentenced for Scratching Initials into Yellowstone’s Roosevelt Arch

President Theodore Roosevelt laid the cornerstone to the 50-foot-tall arch in April 1903

By Associated Press

GARDINER – A Texas man has been sentenced to three days in jail and ordered to pay $250 in restitution for carving his initials into the iconic Roosevelt Arch at the north entrance of Yellowstone National Park.

Park officials say a visitor spotted 26-year-old Dakota D. Tipton of Joshua, Texas, scratching the initials “DDT” into the keystone above a small walkway arch on one side of the larger arch on June 10.

Tipton appeared via phone for sentencing Tuesday by U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Carman in Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming. The U.S. Marshal’s Service will determine where Tipton will serve his sentence.

President Theodore Roosevelt laid the cornerstone to the 50-foot-tall arch in April 1903. The inscription on top reads: “For the benefit and enjoyment of the people.”