Traffic Sign Vandalism Is Creating Hazards

Newtown has apparently become home to a group of vandals who have gotten a kick out of painting over street signs. Their handiwork has cost the town thousands of dollars and created traffic hazards all over town.

One stop sign was painted over with green paint, and the vandal then finished the job off by painting “GO” in the place of “STOP.”  At least 40 stop signs in Newtown have been defaced over the past two weeks, prompting First Selectman Herb Rosenthal to issue a strong warning to these street sign “artists.”

“I want to tell parents that this is not fun and games. We plan to press the police department to prosecute anyone caught doing this,” he said Monday. “It’s getting worse and we’re not going to tolerate it.”

The first selectman said he will not heed any sob stories from those who are arrested.

Public Works Director Fred Hurley said this summer’s sign graffiti is the worst he has ever seen in Newtown.

“We’re still counting. It’s dozens and dozens and dozens of signs that have been defaced. It’s everywhere. Personally, I am very upset about this,” Mr Hurley said. “It’s one thing to steal street signs – like Budd Drive or Brandywine Road – but when they start stealing or defacing traffic control signs, that’s putting people at risk. It’s no longer a childish prank. We’re talking about a very serious matter.”

A few years back, three youths were sentenced to prison after their street sign antics led to a motor vehicle accident that took the lives of a mother and her two children.

“The judge tried them for either murder or manslaughter,” Mr Hurley said.

This week, John Mead and David Peck were spotted removing the destroyed signs and replacing them with new ones. Both men could only shake their heads in disgust over the damage.

The street sign vandalism is just the latest in a string of criminal activity that has succeeded in destroying public or private property. Last month, vandals wreaked havoc at Newtown High School and Dickinson and Treadwell parks.

At Newtown High School, vandals used a knife to cut gaping holes in at least two tennis nets, rendering the courts all-but useless for the remainder of the summer. They also cut large holes in at least one field hockey goal net. They then broke into an equipment storage unit, slicing blocking dummies. Garbage was also strewn across the tennis courts.

At Dickinson Park, vandals smashed lawn chairs at the pavilion that had been set up for the annual senior picnic the following day. And at Treadwell, vandals tossed bottles over the fence that surrounds the park’s pool. The bottles smashed across the deck, sending shards of glass in all directions.