Dog Poop Thrown on Trump Sign, Ferndale Business Owner Asked to Take It Down

FERNDALE, MI — A Ferndale business owner said she was was shocked to discover a sign she posted on her property for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump had been desecrated with dog poop overnight. Her outrage didn't end there for her. A city official ordered the business owner to remove the campaign sign.

"I put the sign up and less than 24 hours later there is dog poop on it and the city of Ferndale was outside my front door with a tape measure," Carlotta Cardenas, owner of Seasonal Grower in Ferndale, told Patch. "They said my sign exceeded the limits of signage and I needed to remove it 'right now.' This 'right now' stuff bothered me and I thought they should have put it in the form of a letter and I felt it was political."

At condominiums nearby on Nine Mile Road,, signs measure 20 feet by 20 feet, Cardenas said.

Cardenas took her outrage to Ferndale City Hall, telling the clerk: "This is America and I can express what I want without getting in trouble in the city. Where's freedom of speech? Everyone should be able to vote what they want. That's freedom. That's freedom of speech."

So, how does a city balance code enforcement with freedom of speech?

Jordan Twardy, community and economic development director for the city of Ferndale, told Patch: "We take free speech very seriously. Our ordinance is content neutral. What our ordinance does have is size restriction."

As for Cardenas' sign, Twardy said the issue was resolved and she wasn't required to move the sign.

"It's private property and we were never going to remove it," Twardy said. "Technically there was a violation on the sign because it exceeded the size maximum. As a result of this ordinance, we're going to look at this issue seriously. But especially with the political signage, people get emotional."

On Thursday, trash was thrown on Seasonal Grower's lawn, but that's not stopping Cardenas.

"I've gotten a lot of support. People are calling me saying they're voting for Trump but have been terrified of putting a sign up or bumper sticker on their car in fear of retaliation," she said.

Cardenas plans to leave the sign on display until after Tuesday's presidential election, which falls into the 10-day grace period she was given to remove the sign for size violations.

Photo courtesy of Carlotta Cardenas