This is sure to tick off quite a few people.

A mural of Officer Gary Skerski that was unveiled at the Bridesburg Recreation Center in June has already been defaced. Police said a group of youths spray-painted the mural over the weekend, leaving an ugly mark on a public tribute to a husband and father who sacrificed his life for the city.

"It was probably involving some juveniles who had nothing better to do," Capt. Frank Bachmeyer, the commander of the 15th District, told Philly Confidential earlier today. "I feel it's a disgrace that someone would put graffiti on Officer Skerski's mural. He was a dedicated officer to the community, and everyone knows the sacrifice that he made."

A mural artist returned to the rec center earlier today and cleaned and re-painted the mural, which no doubt calmed some nerves and prevented this from becoming a bigger news story. The cleanup effort doesn't, however, change the fact that someone's son or daughter didn't have the decency to respect something that honored Skerski, who was shot to death on May 8, 2006, when he responded to a bar robbery in the lower Northeast.

Bachmeyer is asking anyone in the Bridesburg area who thinks they know the vandals to contact police at 215-686-3150 or -3151.