In nearly every election, there is usually mischief on the campaign trail.

Rio Rancho’s municipal election, which is on March 4, is no different.

One candidate has already said that campaign signs have been destroyed. District 4 city council candidate Steve Shaw has reported that nine of his signs have been removed or destroyed.

The signs are not cheap or easy to erect. First, a candidate must get a permit to erect a sign in any public right-of-way. The initial permit costs $30, plus $1 for each sticker, which must be placed on the sign. Signs with metal posts cost $4. So, that’s $30 initially and $5 a sign. Every time a candidate erects a sign, he or she must go to City Hall and get a permit for the sign.

“We see it every election, it doesn’t mater what it is,” Rio Rancho Department of Public Safety spokesman John Francis said. “We see the theft of signs and the vandalism of signs.”

If a police officer catches someone stealing or vandalizing a sign, the perpetrator could be charged with criminal damage to property or petty larceny - both misdemeanors. The accused will go in front of the municipal judge and could receive a fine not exceeding $300 or up to 90 days in jail.

Francis said there is no way to prevent damaging signs unless someone watches them 24 hours.

Shaw said he has found nine of his signs either missing or torn into pieces, while other candidates’ signs are untouched.

“It seems there must be someone living in the High Resort area who has nothing better to do than to destroy my campaign signs that have been placed along the right of way,” Shaw said.

On Jan. 26, Shaw said he saw one of his signs he placed along Double Diamond near High Resort was missing. He replaced it and the following day he saw the sign torn into three to four pieces.

As Shaw drove down High Resort, he saw a sign placed across from Presbyterian suffered the same fate.

Shaw made a report to the Department of Public Safety, believing it was vandalism.

However, later Shaw’s wife Judy discovered more signs destroyed.

Now, the District 4 hopeful believes it is not random vandalism, but someone who doesn’t support his desire to serve as a city councilor.

“The signs don’t cost that much, it is more the aggravation of having to make a trip to City Hall to get the right of way stickers replaced and having to once again replace the sign,” Shaw said. “I wish the party responsible for such a childless act would come forward or use their right to vote as their means of expressing their views and leave the signs alone. I plan to continue replacing the signs with the hope that someone will see the perpetrator and report their acts or that they will be caught in the act by one of our fine DPS officers.”

Shaw knows a thing or two about law enforcement. He served 21 years in the Rio Rancho Department of Public Safety, before retiring in December of 2006.