“I knew it was coming because I saw the building inspector at my house,” said Early, 42. “I wrote a letter back to them saying that I am not violating any ordinance.”

Ricky Early, who lives on Kenoza Avenue, said he received a letter Friday saying he was in violation of a city ordinance that states the surface area of all political campaign signs in one yard cannot total more than 32 square feet.

A Haverhill resident faces a fine for having too many signs supporting Donald Trump for president in his yard.

Early estimated that his signs add up to between 150 and 200 square feet, but said he doesn’t think he should be penalized. He said he thinks the city’s action is simply a result of officials not agreeing with his politics.


“The signs have been up since January and now someone decided that since Trump is getting momentum, it’s time to abide by the rules,” Early said. “They’ve been up for eight months, so I just think the timing is wrong.”

Mayor James J. Fiorentini said in an e-mail that everyone in Haverhill must follow the decades-old law, even city officials like him.

“When I ran for mayor, my campaign was asked to and did take down signs that did not comply,” Fiorentini said. “It was enforced against former Mayor Bill Ryan. It was enforced against City Councilor Sven Amirian two years ago when he put up signs that were too big.”

Fiorentini said the building inspector may have been alerted to the signs.

“I do not know how long Mr. Early has had his signs up, but I do know that the building inspector acted, as he always does, when he received complaints and inquiries,” the mayor said. “It is not a defense that you are allowed to violate the law or that the inspectors did not catch you earlier.”


The Haverhill ordinance regarding temporary signs limits “political campaign signs announcing the candidates seeking public political office and other data pertinent thereto, up to a maximum total sign area of 32 square feet for each property. These signs shall be confined within private property and removed within 14 days after the election for which they were made.”

Fiorentini offered some advice to anyone wishing to keep larger signs.

“If someone believes that the law is unfair, they work to have it repealed, not flaunt it,” he said. “As long as the law is on the books, it is the job of the building inspector to enforce it.

Globe correspondent Martha Schick contributed to this report. Olivia Quintana can be reached at olivia.quintana@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @oliviasquintana.