Candidate sign damage is a crime

In this space last week, we talked about how vandalism always seems to increase this time of year, with many of those acts being inappropriate pranks. But it’s not just Halloween that we’re talking about here.

We’ve gotten reports within the past week of campaign signs being damaged or stolen.

This happens every year – supporters of local candidates give of their time and money to purchase and display campaign signs. And vandals – whether they’re someone opposing a particular candidate or just looking to cause a little damage – tear up or steal those signs.

Vandalizing a campaign sign is just like vandalizing someone’s house or car – it’s a criminal offense. So if offenders are caught, they can expect law enforcement personnel to treat it just like any other offense.

In fact, we’re hoping that they do get caught. What they are doing is suppressing people’s right to express their opinions.

We encourage county residents to be on the lookout for people stealing or damaging campaign signs, or, for that matter, all types of criminal activity. It would be a good way to kick off the CrimeWatchers program being initiated by law enforcement officials throughout the county.

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