Resident Files Claim Over Removal of Sign

An Oxnard Dunes resident filed a $1-million claim against the city of Oxnard, alleging that Mayor Nao Takasugi and police officials conspired to allow the removal of a sign from his property.

Stephen R. Blanchard said he suffered knee and shoulder bruises in October when Oxnard Shores Community Assn. secretary Tom Conway and two assistants tore down his sign, which described the area as toxic.

Blanchard contends that his house and the rest of the Oxnard Dunes neighborhood sit on a toxic waste dump, a charge that state health officials deny. Conway said he had the right to tear down the sign under homeowners association bylaws, but Blanchard said his house is outside the association’s jurisdiction.

Blanchard, who was sued by the city for refusing to take down his sign, alleged in his claim that police failed to respond promptly to a 911 distress call while his sign was being defaced. Records show that police responded in 20 minutes.

Blanchard said he tried to prevent the three men who defaced the sign from leaving his property, but they ran over him in their pickup, injuring his knees and shoulder.

He said police deliberately delayed arriving because the department had conspired with the city attorney, the mayor and City Council members to allow Conway enough time to tear down the sign.

Takasugi, the only city official named in the claim, said no such conspiracy ever existed. “Any citizen has a right to file a lawsuit, but if the basis of that suit is a conspiracy, I see nothing to justify it,” he said.