FULLERTON : Recall Group Ousts Accused Secretary

W. Snow Hume, a leader of a successful recall effort against three City Council members, has been forced to resign as secretary of the Fullerton Recalls Committee after being ordered to appear in court on vandalism charges.

Police last week served Hume with an order to appear in court Oct. 18--the day of the special recall election--on charges of tearing down campaign signs belonging to City Council candidates.

“We asked (Hume) to resign, and he did, mainly because of the sign issue,” said Recalls Committee Chairman Thomas Babcock.

Hume, one of the most outspoken recall leaders, said he deliberately disobeyed a committee order to stay away from any campaign sign controversy because he was fed up with seeing campaign signs placed illegally throughout the city.

“I was under explicit orders to not get involved with the sign controversy, but I got involved, so I had it coming,” Hume said about being forced to resign.

He said that he did remove some signs but that he had permission from property owners to do so.

Jim Rector, an original recall proponent, will serve as the committee’s secretary, Babcock said.

Police said they charged Hume with vandalizing signs belonging to council candidates Peter Godfrey and Jan Flory.

They said they investigated the thefts of hundreds of signs belonging to Godfrey, Flory and recalled Councilman Don Bankhead.