stop stealing my lawn signs!

[Anonymous]

I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

Call the police and ask them to keep vigil over your yard every night until the election. Nevermind about murders, rapes, armed robbery, illlegal drugs. The police should actually care about political signs? You don't have to pay for them so keep putting them up. Why don't you chain one to a cement block and attach bells and whistles so an alarm will go off when these political sign thieves are busy with nocturnal mischief?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

Call the police and ask them to keep vigil over your yard every night until the election. Nevermind about murders, rapes, armed robbery, illlegal drugs. The police should actually care about political signs? You don't have to pay for them so keep putting them up. Why don't you chain one to a cement block and attach bells and whistles so an alarm will go off when these political sign thieves are busy with nocturnal mischief?

When you belittle free speech, you trash one of the founding freedoms of our nation. You don't get to decide which speech is important and which speech can be suppressed. I voted for Fenty, but I still know right from wrong. It is anti-American to suppress political speech.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

Call the police and ask them to keep vigil over your yard every night until the election. Nevermind about murders, rapes, armed robbery, illlegal drugs. The police should actually care about political signs? You don't have to pay for them so keep putting them up. Why don't you chain one to a cement block and attach bells and whistles so an alarm will go off when these political sign thieves are busy with nocturnal mischief?

When you belittle free speech, you trash one of the founding freedoms of our nation. You don't get to decide which speech is important and which speech can be suppressed. I voted for Fenty, but I still know right from wrong. It is anti-American to suppress political speech.

It's anti-American to attempt to harness the government to suppress political speech. It's merely illegal to steal signs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

Call the police and ask them to keep vigil over your yard every night until the election. Nevermind about murders, rapes, armed robbery, illlegal drugs. The police should actually care about political signs? You don't have to pay for them so keep putting them up. Why don't you chain one to a cement block and attach bells and whistles so an alarm will go off when these political sign thieves are busy with nocturnal mischief?

When you belittle free speech, you trash one of the founding freedoms of our nation. You don't get to decide which speech is important and which speech can be suppressed. I voted for Fenty, but I still know right from wrong. It is anti-American to suppress political speech.

Agreed. Not to mention theft of private property, something that everyone is up in arms about when it's the GPS from their cars (for example).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

Call the police and ask them to keep vigil over your yard every night until the election. Nevermind about murders, rapes, armed robbery, illlegal drugs. The police should actually care about political signs? You don't have to pay for them so keep putting them up. Why don't you chain one to a cement block and attach bells and whistles so an alarm will go off when these political sign thieves are busy with nocturnal mischief?

When you belittle free speech, you trash one of the founding freedoms of our nation. You don't get to decide which speech is important and which speech can be suppressed. I voted for Fenty, but I still know right from wrong. It is anti-American to suppress political speech.

It's anti-American to attempt to harness the government to suppress political speech. It's merely illegal to steal signs.

The signs ARE speech. And it's anti-american to suppress it, whether it is the government or you as a private citizen. It's not like they are being taken for the value of scrap posterboard.

[Anonymous]

Wow, OP here. So because one crime is lesser than another (and I agree that the theft of my lawn sign does not approach that of violent crime), I don't have the right to expect the law to be enforced? Do you follow the same logic? If, say, someone steals your car, or a check from your mailbox, do you fail to call the police because it is not a rape or a murder? Comments like the first response really do more to show the idiocy of the responder than anything else.

I've put another one up. But it's irritating. There are plenty of articles discussing the "sea of Gray signs" in my ward, and no wonder. All of the Fenty signs have been repeatedly stolen. Interfering with an election takes many forms. Certainly the theft of my lawn sign is not the most egregious, but it's interference nonetheless. Especially since the effort appears to be coordinated, since it happens again and again, and it happens to my entire neighborhood. This isn't just one instance of my Gray supporting neighbor making off with my sign or something.

In any case, I guess I should be thankful that I"m not the kind of person who steals lawn signs (no matter how abhorrent I find the competitor) and that I'm not the kind of person who thinks it's so trivial that it's worthy of mockery.

Oh well, people will be nasty about anything, I guess! If I see someone in my yard, I suppose the best thing I can do is turn my hose on them. While the police perhaps SHOULD care about every crime, it's clear that they don't.

[Anonymous]

If it is any consolation, I have had my Gray sign stolen three times.

Not going to bother again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:the effort appears to be coordinated, since it happens again and again, and it happens to my entire neighborhood.

I wish someone would come to my neighborhood and steal the Fenty sign someone put up on the lawn of the bank-owned house across the street (since it's clear that no-one gave permission for it to be posted there).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, OP here. So because one crime is lesser than another (and I agree that the theft of my lawn sign does not approach that of violent crime), I don't have the right to expect the law to be enforced? Do you follow the same logic? If, say, someone steals your car, or a check from your mailbox, do you fail to call the police because it is not a rape or a murder? Comments like the first response really do more to show the idiocy of the responder than anything else.

I've put another one up. But it's irritating. There are plenty of articles discussing the "sea of Gray signs" in my ward, and no wonder. All of the Fenty signs have been repeatedly stolen. Interfering with an election takes many forms. Certainly the theft of my lawn sign is not the most egregious, but it's interference nonetheless. Especially since the effort appears to be coordinated, since it happens again and again, and it happens to my entire neighborhood. This isn't just one instance of my Gray supporting neighbor making off with my sign or something.

In any case, I guess I should be thankful that I"m not the kind of person who steals lawn signs (no matter how abhorrent I find the competitor) and that I'm not the kind of person who thinks it's so trivial that it's worthy of mockery.

Oh well, people will be nasty about anything, I guess! If I see someone in my yard, I suppose the best thing I can do is turn my hose on them. While the police perhaps SHOULD care about every crime, it's clear that they don't.

Call the non-emergency line for DC police precinct in your area and report this crime. Please let us know whet they tell you when they stop laughing.

[Anonymous]

I think stealing a sign is not only a wrong done to the person who put up the sign and to the candidate the sign supported, but to the opposition candidate who tends to get blamed for the disappearance.

In fact, the latter is probably the greatest harm, so I would say that either the person who stole it was either a very stupid supporter of the opponent or, more likely, some malicious vandal.

In any case, if there were a systematic attempt to remove signs of one of the candidates, I think it highly likely that someone would be caught -- law of averages and all that .

[Anonymous]

i'm in ward three and my fenty sign has been taken at least 4 times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

Call the police and ask them to keep vigil over your yard every night until the election. Nevermind about murders, rapes, armed robbery, illlegal drugs. The police should actually care about political signs? You don't have to pay for them so keep putting them up. Why don't you chain one to a cement block and attach bells and whistles so an alarm will go off when these political sign thieves are busy with nocturnal mischief?

When you belittle free speech, you trash one of the founding freedoms of our nation. You don't get to decide which speech is important and which speech can be suppressed. I voted for Fenty, but I still know right from wrong. It is anti-American to suppress political speech.

I ran for office once and every night my signs were taken down by other opposition. Finally, I complained to VA Bd. of Elections and was told there was nothing illegal about this. I lost but I did receive 24of the vote.

[Anonymous]

That was "24% of the vote."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Ward 5. Mayor Fenty himself came to my house and asked for my vote. While I don't love him, I don't think Gray is any better. After careful consideration, I've decided to give Fenty my vote and support. I had his lawn sign in my yard, as did about 8 of my neighbors. Well, for the fourth time, they have been stolen out of our yards. All but two or three of my neighbors have basically given up on replacing them. As for me, I'll replace it every day if I have to. I understand passion, but what the hell? Stealing lawn signs seems so innocent but it's not. It is malicious interference with an election. Does anyone ever get prosecuted for these types of crimes? I'm not saying throw them in the clink and throw away the key, but an arrest and maybe some community service? I'm so angry! And I'm sick of replacing my lawn sign. I guess the next one will go on the inside of my window.

Call the police and ask them to keep vigil over your yard every night until the election. Nevermind about murders, rapes, armed robbery, illlegal drugs. The police should actually care about political signs? You don't have to pay for them so keep putting them up. Why don't you chain one to a cement block and attach bells and whistles so an alarm will go off when these political sign thieves are busy with nocturnal mischief?

When you belittle free speech, you trash one of the founding freedoms of our nation. You don't get to decide which speech is important and which speech can be suppressed. I voted for Fenty, but I still know right from wrong. It is anti-American to suppress political speech.

I ran for office once and every night my signs were taken down by other opposition. Finally, I complained to VA Bd. of Elections and was told there was nothing illegal about this. I lost but I did receive 24of the vote.

They gave you bad information. In VA, it is at least petty larceny. Maybe they meant that it did not specifically violate campaign laws. This might be true, because I don't believe VA campaign laws cover the lawn signs. Campaign signs usually fall under local ordinance along with other signage.