page_title: Roman Týc
section_title: The Traffic Lights
hierarchical_section_title: Roman Týc / Cases monitored by media / The Traffic Lights
caption_attribution_description: Česky: Pozměněné semafory v rámci akce, ke které se přihlásil Roman Týc a skupina Ztohoven. English: Illegally modificated traffic light in Prague, the Czech Republic. (Performance of underground streetart group Ztohoven.) Camera location 50°&#160;5′&#160;18.70″&#160;N, 14°&#160;24′&#160;55.80″&#160;E This and other images at their locations on: Google Maps - Google Earth - OpenStreetMap(Info)
context_page_description: Roman Týc is a Czech artist known for his guerrilla art work in "public space" or "street art". Týc is a co-founder of the Ztohoven art group and of the visual art group PureA. He helped with the formation of alternative culture centre Ateliery Trafacka.
context_section_description: April 8, 2007 - Roman replaced the "obedient" walker characters in 50 traffic lights in Prague for characters that intended to resemble us in unexpected situations. The pissing, shitting, drinking, lying, sitting, committing suicide with a gun, hanged, one legged, mother with a child characters were seen on traffic lights on zebra crossings in Prague. 
  The Czech judicial system, confused by the use of pseudonym, charged "a member of Ztohoven group - David Brudnak" of damaging the public property and summoned him to court. David Brudnak testified: "my connection to Roman Týc is very strong indeed, but not so strong that I would take his place in this case, because our physiognomy is significantly different" and applied for his right to remain silent.
  In 2008, Týc was sentenced by judge Tomáš Hájek to pay a fine of CZK 60,000 and to pay damages of CZK 82,000 (altogether approx US$7,000). In case he failed to pay the fine, he would have had to serve one month in prison. On the day of the verdict Týc appeared in Czech TV newscast (CT 24) saying that he preferred imprisonment over the penalty.
  In December 2011 the District Court of Prague 7 stated that David Hons had refused to pay the CZK 60,000 imposed on him three years earlier (confirmed by David Hons even before the trial by sending an open letter to his Judge) and therefore he was to serve the imprisonment.
  David Hons, signed as Roman Týc, in his second open letter stated he saw his act neither as a crime nor an offense but an unselfish project that enriched a society in its time.
  On February 24, 2012 Roman Týc began to serve a custodial sentence in Pankrác Prison.
  A short movie made on the Traffic Lights Replacement called "Romantycke semafory" (Romantyc Traffic Lights) won the Audience Award of the SidewalkCinema 2007 Viena festival.
caption: In April 2007, Týc, a member of the underground street art group Ztohoven, illegally modified traffic lights in Prague. He was jailed for one month after refusing to pay a 60,000 CZK fine.[1]
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