WSMV- Nashville Channel 4 News Teen, angry over brother's deployment, steals 71 Bush signs

September 29, 2004

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Police said a Nashville teenager and his friends stole 71 Bush-Cheney yard signs because he was mad at President Bush for sending his brother to Iraq.

Andrew Thurman, 18, told police that he and 19-year-old Frederick Stevenson stole the signs from several west Nashville neighborhoods because his brother, a U.S. marine, was sent to Iraq.

'It's not unusual to see the isolated theft of campaign signs in local, state and federal elections,' Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said. 'However, this is the first time I can recall that someone who admits responsibility for the theft has linked it to the war in Iraq.'

Thurman, Stevenson and two other teens were riding in a Honda Accord when they were stopped by police. Officers searched the car and found the signs, along with three pistols.

Thurman and Stevenson were cited for misdemeanor charges of theft and unlawful weapon possession. The other teens, who were both minors, face only the weapon charge.

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