Bucks County police are using technology to solve crimes involving campaign signs

The third time thieves stole her Harris-Walz sign last weekend, Phyllis Arnold said she didn’t notice.

She discovered it was missing after a friend told her he had found her sign along with dozens of others in a dumpster in nearby Chalfont.

The friend came across the cache of discarded Democratic presidential ticket signs when he went looking for his stolen Harris-Walz sign, which had an air tag that allowed him to track its location.

On Monday, Buckingham police confirmed they are investigating four reports of stolen Harris-Walz signs in the past two days, including Arnold’s and the one with the tracking device.

Bucks County police say an increase in profanity complaints is not unusual during the final weeks of presidential races, and it’s an issue that crosses party lines as Republicans and Democrats report both thefts and damage.

In the past, however, police could do little to solve such thefts, which typically occur at night.

But the proliferation of affordable advanced technologies such as high-definition camera systems and GPS trackers are now giving police an edge in investigating nuisance crimes and pursuing criminal charges, including theft and vandalism.

Last month, Lower Makefield police filed a larceny and theft of property charge against a 46-year-old Newtown Township man after he was caught on video allegedly stealing a large Trump-Vance sign from a front lawn .

At least a half-dozen other complaints about stolen or vandalized political signs have been filed in Lower Makefield this month, police said. They include a report of a political sign being set on fire and another report of someone relieving themselves on the front lawn of a home and covering it with a political sign.

In nearby Falls Township, police charged a Bristol man with theft earlier this month after he was caught stealing a large plywood Trump-Vance sign worth $150 on Levittown Parkway near Mill Creek Road.

Two teenage boys in Middletown were charged last month with tearing down a Harris-Walz flag and toppling a large sign supporting Democratic candidates at a home in the Cobalt Ridge section of Levittown.

However, Middletown Lt. Steven Forman said he is not convinced the act was politically motivated. “I got the impression that the young people didn’t care which party the signs were from,” he says.

So far this political season, Forman said he has not seen a significant increase in vandalism and theft of political signs compared to previous presidential races.

“After November 5, we will receive more complaints^e about the political signals on the side of the road that need to be addressed,” he added.

Northampton Township Police have received four reports of signs being stolen or vandalized

“Every presidential candidate was equally targeted,” Northampton Chief Steven LeCompte added.

This led to a recent increase in reports of damaged and stolen political signs Plumstead Municipal Police And Doylestown Township Police Department each to post online calls for civility.

Doylestown Township police are also receiving reports of “politically charged phrases” scrawled on municipal property, prompting increased police patrols.

Four years ago, Amy McKenna-Fell and her husband didn’t call the police after someone stole the large Biden-Harris sign they placed on the front lawn of their Buckingham home.

But when thieves targeted their home Saturday night and stole a half-dozen Harris-Walz lawn signs, including a four-by-six-foot plywood worth $250, they had had enough.

The couple filed a police report on Monday, McKenna-Fell said.

“It was very purposeful. All signs of local (Democratic) politicians were left untouched,” McKenna-Fell said. “It feels very angry. It feels like people see the signs more as public property than private property.”

McKenna-Fell and her husband were busy Sunday making a new large sign to replace the stolen one. They also ordered new, smaller lawn signs.

“It’s really unfortunate that it came down to this,” McKenna-Fell said. “You don’t change someone’s mind about who they vote for. You’re just stealing someone’s property.”

Reporter Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at [email protected]