Organizers of the Iraqi war memorial at the Allen Street Gates said it was taken Monday night.

The memorial, which was 15 feet wide and 4 feet tall, listed 549 names of the U.S. soldiers who have died since the United States entered Iraq and how each soldier died.

Sacha Brown (senior-English), a member of The Streets Project who helped build the memorial, said she saw it was hanging at the Allen Street Gates at about 6:30 p.m. on Monday. Roger Reimer, a State College resident who also helped build the memorial, said he noticed it was missing when he finished eating dinner at The Corner Room, 100 W. College Ave., at about 7:30 p.m.

Neither Brown nor Reimer have reported the theft of the memorial to Penn State University Police, which would have jurisdiction over the case.

University Police supervisor Bill Moerschbacher said police cannot begin to investigate until the owners of the memorial report it as stolen.

Brown said she is considering reporting the theft to police. She said she has not yet because she is unsure whether it can be considered stolen because it was placed in a public area.

Moerschbacher said the memorial could still be considered stolen even though it was placed in a public area.

Reimer said he hopes media attention will lead to a police investigation.

Brown said she is upset about the memorial's theft because it shows disrespect for those who have died. She said she is disappointed the 120 hours of work she and others spent constructing the memorial have been wasted.

"My hope is that someone will return it," Brown said.

Reimer said the theft of the memorial represents an infringement on his constitutional rights.

"We were shut up," Reimer said. "Even though some people may not like what we're doing, we still have the right to do it."

Brown said the memorial was originally constructed to keep the events in Iraq in community members' minds.

Reimer said he got involved with creating the memorial because he doubted President Bush's motives for going to war with Iraq.

"I never believed that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction," Reimer said. "These soldiers died needlessly and I'm mourning their death."

Brown said building a new memorial identical to the one that was stolen would be too expensive and time consuming. She said she plans to place a simpler memorial at the Allen Street Gates that states the number of soldiers who have died in Iraq. She said she would update the number as it changes.