Ventura County Candidate to Pay $1,000 in Vandalism Case

Seeking to draw the curtain on the videotaped sign-trashing incident that could be the final act of his political career, failed Assembly candidate Rich Sybert has agreed to pay $1,000 in fines and fees.

As a result of the out-of-court settlement, Sybert will pay Thousand Oaks $350 for each of the two “Tony Strickland for Assembly” placards he was caught destroying in the city during a series of late-night incidents in April. He will also pay $200 in legal fees and $100 to a victims restitution fund.

The Harvard-educated attorney and Oxnard toy company executive had faced up to $2,000 in city fines after Thousand Oaks filed a civil complaint against him June 12.

The settlement clears Sybert, 46, of any further liability for the incidents, which Thousand Oaks officials claimed violated the city’s political sign ordinance. It also includes specific language stating that the signs were illegally posted, and that Sybert was on public property when he tore them down.

Sybert, who lost the Republican primary to Strickland earlier this month by a wide margin, said he was glad to resolve the case. Sybert lost two congressional races earlier this decade and says he is through with politics.

“I’m happy to settle this, of course,” he said. “Frankly, I think it was a little bit of piling on to even bring this, but I’m happy about the settlement.”