UC Davis’ ‘mystery cat graffiti person’ ordered to pay $32,000
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The student behind the pink cat icons spray-painted around Davis was caught and arrested
By LAILA AZHAR — features@theaggie.org
Editor’s Note: The printed edition of the article used the word “fine” in the headline and one instance in body text. For clarification, the online article has been adjusted.
On her 19th birthday, a UC Davis student now known on social media as @happycatshrooms learned she was old enough to purchase a can of spray paint. Growing up, she had been surrounded by vibrant street art.
“I grew up in Los Angeles, where there’s graffiti everywhere, and it never gets taken down,” @happycatshrooms said.
Excited to be able to partake in this artistic medium, she spray-painted a pink cat drawing in a bike tunnel on the UC Davis campus. The symbol was silly and endearing; charmed, her friends immediately voiced their excitement.
Before long, the excitement spread outside her circle of friends. Strangers began discussing the “mystery cat graffiti person,” who was eventually dubbed “catshrooms” by students online.
“Someone has been spray-painting cats and [Pokemon] all over campus,” a comment on a Reddit post asking “Any cool graffiti or street art scenes in Davis?” reads. “It always makes me happy to see it.”
“I love you I love you,” another post reads. “Seriously. I am having such a hard time lately and seeing your cute, wholesome, harmless [little] art makes me feel better. (Also with all the dicks on the bike bridge lately this is such an improvement).”
An anonymous UC Davis alum expressed similar feelings.
“The pink cats were a big part of my Davis experience for all four years,” the anonymous alum said. “I used to walk through the Cuarto bike tunnel every day, and seeing the cats in there always put a smile on my face.”
Samantha Wang, a third-year political science major, expressed a similar sentiment.
“Going online and seeing the excitement about the pink cats was always cute,” Wang said. “It felt like a bonding experience for UC Davis students — like a unique part of the town and campus culture.”
What started spontaneously during her first year eventually became a project to brighten the days of the UC Davis students walking around campus. Throughout the next few years, the cats appeared in spots around Davis and throughout campus, including in the Arboretum.
The summer before her fourth year, she was spray-painting the cats near the Tercero dorms at around 5 a.m. when she was approached by two police officers.
“I was crying, and I was cooperating,” @happycatshrooms said. “They told me to get down, and I got down. I gave them my hands; I was answering all their questions — which, in retrospect, I shouldn’t have done,” noting that while she had been read her Miranda rights, she had assumed cooperating was in her best interest.
The officers placed her in handcuffs and took her to a police station, where she experienced a series of unusual exchanges.
“I had to pee at some point, and the officer was so hesitant about letting me go,” @happycatshrooms said. “He was like, ‘Ok, well, first I need to take pictures of your hands.’ Then he was like, ‘You can go but you have to leave the door open.’ I remember one of the ladies at the station saying, ‘Just let her go to the bathroom,’ and she gave me tissues because I was snotting everywhere.”
One of the officers asked her to write an apology letter to UC Davis Chancellor Gary May — a request she found surprising, as her amount due in restitution is for the state of California.
“The guy was like, ‘I’m really good friends with Gary May, and if he reads this letter, maybe he’ll go easy on you,’” @happycatshrooms said. “I wrote the letter, and it was covered in tear stains. I don’t think Gary May ever saw it.”
She was driven to Woodland, where she was kept in a cell until about 2 p.m. Her phone was confiscated, and she found her way home with nothing but the bus pass provided to her and a vague recollection of the route back to Davis.
After a series of court dates, she was charged with a misdemeanor and informed that she must pay $32,000 in restitution, to compensate for damages, by May 2026. To put that in perspective — California’s standard amount due for a misdemeanor is $1,000. A first-time Driving Under the Influence (DUI) offender, for example, might be charged around $1,000, alongside potential costs such as attorney fees or DUI education programs.
“I understand that what I did was wrong,” @happycatshrooms said. “But I also don’t want it to get lost that this is a very harsh punishment for what it was — and I haven’t spoken to a single person who disagrees.”
While she’s grateful to have been charged with a misdemeanor and not a felony, despite the high price to pay in restitution, the case has substantially impacted her.
After getting an on-the-spot offer for a retail job, she went home glad to have aced the interview. She wasn’t nervous about the background check — the location was an equal access employer, meaning that if a crime committed isn’t relevant to the field at hand, she should be in the clear.
However, the job offer was rescinded. When she spoke to the manager of the store, she confirmed that it was due to the background check failing. While she said she’s aware she shouldn’t have broken the law, she noted that the cats were something that brought her joy during a difficult period of her life.
“I struggle with my mental health a lot,” @happycatshrooms said.
She had been placed on a 5150 hold — an involuntary psychiatric commitment — when she first began painting the cats.
“The cats were something I would do while struggling with a drinking problem,” @happycatshrooms said.
Through adding a pop of bright pink into students’ daily lives, she was able to find purpose and take pride in the fact that she was making other students and community members happy.
“The cats helped other people, and helping other people made me feel good about myself,” @happycatshrooms said. “They gave me a reason to keep going.”
While her cats will no longer be found on the walls of UC Davis campus, stickers of the iconic cat symbol and crocheted cats can be purchased through her ko-fi, happy catshrooms, where the money raised will be put toward helping her pay off the restitution. To stay up to date on new developments for this artist, check out her Instagram account, @happycatshrooms.