A Tulsa man says an election sign on his front lawn has lead to a death threat.
Kyle Counts was outside his new house with his friend when his neighbor drove up and shouted at him.
“He appeared drunk and his question to me, was, ‘Are you a democrat or are you a politician?’ Which in it of itself suggested to me he wasn’t all there so I said ‘Excuse me?’” said Counts. “He got out of the car, cursed at me said I didn’t even know what the bleep he was talking about.”
Counts' girlfriend, Alisa Hopkins, was inside Counts’ house and came out toward the end of the argument. The neighbor had parked in his driveway, which is two houses down from Counts’ home.
“He came and told me I was the new guy on the block,” continued Counts. “He said, ‘I don’t want any problems,’ and I said ‘Well, there aren’t any problems, you are free to vote however you want and this is how I am voting and he proceeded to tell me ‘Well, there could be,’ and I asked him ‘Are you threatening me?’ And he said, ‘No, it is what it is.’ He continuously got aggressive cursing at me, threatening there were going to be problems if I didn’t take the sign down.”
The neighbor would not stop arguing, according to Counts.
“At that point his wife came out and grabbed him and she didn’t apologize but she did say she would keep him away and from harassing us,” said Counts. “The last thing he yelled was ‘I am going to shoot you all.’”
Hopkins happened to record the neighbor’s audio on her cell phone. You can here a man shouting “I’m going to shoot you guys” on the cell phone video. You can also hear the reaction of Counts, his friend, and Hopkins. They were in disbelief.
“I was shocked,” said Counts. “I have never experienced anything like this and I am a pretty outspoken person about my political beliefs.”
“I am concerned to be outside during the evenings now,” said Hopkins. “I don’t know this individual. “We don’t want to remove the sign.”
“I have no illusions about Oklahoma,” said Counts. “I know candidate Romney will win this state, but I am a political person and I feel the least I should be able to put a sign in my yard without being harassed, much less death threats.”
FOX23 talked with the neighbors, who allegedly yelled the threat. A woman in the house said her husband never threatened them.
When FOX23 told her there was a cell phone video recording the man’s voice saying he would shoot them, she denied that and said Hopkins was the aggressive one.
Counts had called the police and the police talked with both parties. Counts said the police told him the neighbors denied everything and no police report was filed.
The couple plans to stand by their rights and keep the sign up until the end of the election season.
