Escalating sign spat riles San Jose District 9 candidates - San Jose Spotlight

"Usually, the sign takers go to great lengths to hide their identities. But in the ongoing race for the District 9 City Council seat, the man behind a rash of sign disappearances not only reached out to the candidates to let them know what he had done - he gave them his home address so they could come by and pick the signs up."

"But two District 9 candidates who have reported scores of missing signs - tech worker Rick Ator and entrepreneur Mike Hennessy - see things differently. They contend Bollini is an unsanctioned sign vigilante who is single-handedly undermining the integrity of the five-way District 9 primary election on June 2, which also includes licensed family and marriage therapist Genny Altwer, current District 9 Chief of Staff Scott Hughes and longtime city employee Gordon Chester."

"Ator and Hennessy said the alleged thefts - clustered along Almaden Expressway, Blossom Hill Road, Capitol Expressway and Hillsdale Avenue - have cost their campaigns thousands of dollars, and caused them to fear they have become the targets of a harassment campaign. Both have made reports to law enforcement authorities, but their signs continue to disappear."

"Increasingly frustrated, the pair have at times taken matters into their own hands, in an escalating row that has involved a series of tense confrontations, use of video surveillance and reports of an unknown chemical agent found on some signs. In one incident, Hennessy entered Bollini's home without permission to retriev"

Campaign signs in San Jose frequently go missing, prompting accusations of theft and sabotage. In the District 9 City Council race, a Cambrian resident named Jeff Bollini says he removes signs he believes were placed illegally and offers candidates his home address to retrieve them. Two candidates, Rick Ator and Mike Hennessy, report many missing signs and argue Bollini is acting as an unsanctioned vigilante that undermines the June 2 primary. They say the disappearances cost thousands of dollars and create fear of a harassment campaign, leading them to file law enforcement reports. Confrontations have escalated, involving video surveillance and reports of an unknown chemical agent on some signs, and one candidate entered Bollini’s home without permission to retrieve signs.

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