Illegally placed signs speak volumes of their progenitors

St. Augustine Record Letter: Illegally placed signs speak volumes of their progenitors
Illegally placed campaign signs: Consider the source
Posted: August 24, 2016 - 12:00am | Updated: August 24, 2016 - 9:37am

By Jon Hazel
Illegally placed campaign signs: Consider the source

Editor: As voters evaluate those running for office, considering which candidates have the integrity not to systematically violate state, county and city laws by cluttering intersections and roadways with illegally placed campaign signs?

The laws of Florida, St. Johns County and our two municipalities are consistent and simple: Campaign signs placed in public rights-of-way are prohibited. Period. Yet the proliferation of illegally placed signs is over the top this year. The rules are provided to all candidates by the Supervisor of Elections. It’s on her website: www.votesjc.com/Candidate-Information/Political-Sign-Info.

Look around. Who are the chief violators? Which ones are respecting the rule of law and which are running with the herd of scofflaws? They are asking for our trust and our sacred vote, yet some campaigns knowingly violate three levels of law.

So what’s the big deal about a few little signs ... wink, wink? If only it were a few. For starters: Visual blight now, then irresponsibly abandoned signs that linger; using taxpayer-purchased property for private purposes; and cheating — yes, choosing not to play by the rules.

But most important, if we can’t trust candidates to abide by even the simplest laws, with their violations right out in the open, what about issues that matter much more ... done behind the scenes?

By law (state, county, city), campaign signs may legally be placed on private property with the consent of the property owner. Repeat: Private property, owner’s consent. So, a good number of the signs you see in yards and from the roadways are legal. But it’s easy to spot the illegal jab-and-runs randomly littering roadsides, walkways in busy areas and sprouting around intersections like wild mushrooms.

A few errant signs? It happens. Systematically disregarding simple laws ... failure to exercise leadership over supporters ... justifying “if he gets away with it, I can, too.” Is that the integrity and self-accountability you’re looking for? Haven’t we had enough of that already? Voters, look around. Those signs can be quite revealing.

St. Augustine Beach