Display of Jewish Signs Is Vandalized : Holiday exhibit: Christmas scenes at same Mission Viejo intersection weren’t damaged. Police say incident may be classified as hate crime.

An outdoor display of Jewish religious symbols was discovered vandalized Monday morning, while Christmas scenes at the same intersection were not harmed.

The collection of wooden signs bearing such symbols as the Star of David were torn from the ground and scattered over the corner lot next to Mission Viejo High School sometime overnight. None was seriously damaged and no graffiti or messages were left.

Police have no clues to the identity of the vandals, who could be charged with a hate crime, Sheriff’s Lt. George Johnson said.

“It might not qualify as a hate crime, but we’re checking with the district attorney’s office, and if it qualifies, we’ll pursue it as a hate crime,” Johnson said. “It was certainly a stupid thing to do. We’ve had several calls from people who are very upset at this.”

Rabbi Bradley Artson of Temple Eilat in Mission Viejo said Jews too often are the target of anti-Semitic acts and comments in Mission Viejo.

“I take this (vandalism) pretty seriously,” he said. “Too many kids are being allowed to think that this type of behavior is acceptable. We have had eggs thrown at our congregation’s homes and Nazi symbols drawn on their property. Our children get pennies thrown at them in school.

“It doesn’t happen consistently enough to be pervasive, but it occurs more than just occasionally.”

The holiday displays at the intersection of La Paz Road and Chrisanta Drive are presented annually by the Mission Viejo Activities Committee, a volunteer group which also organizes the St. Patrick’s Day parade and an Independence Day parade and fair.

Group members gathered at the lot on Monday afternoon to repair the display in time for a Jewish celebration Monday evening that included a choir performance by children who attend a Mission Viejo synagogue.

“I don’t think this had anything to do with Judaism or anti-Semitism,” said Philip Serrins, a past president of the activities committee who erected the first Jewish holiday symbol on the corner in 1981. “I feel this was a hormonal type of activity from some misdirected kid. It certainly isn’t reflective of this community.”

Steve Rutenbar, a pastor at Saddleback Valley Community Church in Lake Forest, who stopped at the intersection Monday, said: “It breaks my heart. Why would they select these sacred Jewish symbols and leave the Christian symbols on the other corners alone? There is no incentive here except for hate.”

Mission Viejo has been the scene of three high profile racial incidents in the past 18 months. One involved the spray-painting of graffiti over much of nearby Trabuco Hills High School last December. Police arrested several Whittier teen-agers a few months later. In July, 1991, a black youth was punched by a passing motorist. The man was found guilty of assault but was acquitted by a jury of hate crime charges.

Mayor Robert D. Breton said he would ask the council Monday night to offer a $1,000 reward for information leading to the capture of the vandals.