This past weekend the Wellesley Police Department received a couple of calls regarding alleged thefts of lawn signs about the Hunnewell track & field lights.
One call involved a resident encountering a group of several juveniles on Saturday night on their lawn removing signs. Upon being approached, the sign swipers apologized and put the signs back. The signs were seen being removed again a bit later, but the perpetrators scattered when the resident approached them. Police spoke with juveniles on Saturday and Sunday, but they denied involvement.
The police received another call on Sunday afternoon regarding a sign located on the Brook Path that had been removed. Video footage showed 3 individuals near the home and 1 coming onto the property to grab the sign.
No doubt there have been other incidents that have gone unreported.
One reader who contacted us about the incidents suggested raising awareness about sign theft, not to get anyone in trouble, but to let people know this sort of behavior could actually rise to the level of larceny or vandalism charges. Also, that lawn signs should not be placed on public property by individuals or organizations without town permission.
With town election season upon us, and more lawn signs to come, let’s hope civility will prevail.
A couple of years ago, the campaign to preserve Columbus Day in Wellesley had our signs repeatedly stolen – literally around the clock. With the use of hidden tracking devices – and in cooperation with the WPD, we were able to track the sign thefts to Wellesley High School students. My suggestion would be to have the Wellesley public schools address the sign theft issue with its students – perhaps in collaboration with the WPD. Sign theft presents an opportunity to learn about respecting private property as well as different political views. Both present important learning opportunities for Wellesley’s students. Let civility prevail in 2023.