Fourteen-year-old Daniel Slocum relishes the chance to leave the Juvenile Justice Center, even if it means spending a hot afternoon slapping paint onto a concrete wall.

Slocum is among a handful of juvenile offenders who earned a spot on a graffiti cleanup crew organized by the Medford Police Department.

The agency finds value in having teens who have made poor choices and ended up on the wrong side of the law give back to the community.

Slocum used to be part of the problem, and now says he is the solution.

“I used to spray paint walls,” he said. “But I was more creative.”

Slocum and the crews worked Friday to cover gang graffiti plastered along the bike path in Phoenix.

Taggers affiliated with the Sureno street gang covered the bottom of the overpass where Fern Valley Road shoots over the bike path with their call signs.

“It’s nice to cover these stupid tags,” Slocum said. “I just don’t like gang graffiti.”

The crew is supervised by Medford Police Community Service Officer Todd Sales.

“This gives them a chance to put something back into the community,” Sales said.

The department supplies Sales with a trailer full of painting equipment and sends him out to tackle graffiti as it appears.

So far, the department has seen a drop in graffiti cases this year. Graffiti is classified as “vandalism” under the Medford police crime code. This could include other crimes, but the vast majority of vandalism cases involve graffiti, Medford Police Chief Tim George said.

Sales said most of the materials are provided at a discount by various Medford businesses such as Rodda Paint on Court Street. The team is picked from teens lodged in the Juvenile Justice Center whose sentences include community service hours.