NATCHEZ — Pictures can be deceiving when taken out of context said the mother of child whose image was circulated on social media this week as an alleged sign thief.

Natchez resident Courtney Geoghegan said her son was not removing the Travis Patten for sheriff sign maliciously, as some supporters alleged as the photograph was shared online.

Geoghegan said she is a supporter of Patten — who won the Adams County sheriff’s race Tuesday — and put signs up supporting him in the yard of her Highland Boulevard residence and near the roadway.

Geoghegan said after noticing other signs gone from the side of the road, she mistakenly thought the election was over.

On Monday morning, Geoghegan pulled over on Highland and asked her son to remove the signs so they would not become litter. Geoghegan said she discovered Tuesday the photograph of her car and her son was circulating online. Geoghegan said she has also received harassing messages online by some who have even alleged race was a factor behind the pictures.

“I’ve been portrayed as some kind of horrible racist who uses my child to remove campaign signs,” she said. “That couldn’t be further from the truth.”

Geoghegan said she wished the person taking the pictures had stopped and asked her about the matter before assuming they knew what was happening.