Florida man fined $30k for tall grass settles with Dunedin following yearslong legal battle
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- Опубліковано 22 тра 2024
- A Dunedin homeowner was fined $30,000 for tall grass, leading to a lawsuit in 2019. That lawsuit, filed by the Institute for Justice on behalf of Jim Ficken for "excessive" fines, brought national attention to the city. An ABC Action News I-Team investigation helped prompt changes that ultimately helped bring closure to Ficken's legal battle. When ABC Action News first spoke with Ficken five years ago, he was facing not only fines - but possible foreclosure.
Crisis PR firm? The taxpayers should be refunded.
Your government is supposed to work FOR you. YOU pay their salary. We need better government.
He seems like a very nice, decent and reasonable man. Sorry he had to even pay these criminals $8k.
Wow,those city leaders sound like crooks!
Dunedin is notorious here in Florida for scamming people this is just one of many stories.
Why do you think politicians are millionaires when salary is 30k
*in Dunedin/Duval County, they are.*
Why not cut the grass and then send him a bill? Just a thought?
It probably wasn't about thr grass. It was about the revenue.
A sign of the times, just how uncaring or oblivious many have become.
Because its all about raising money through fines. Its the same reason their are so many illegal police ticketing schemes in every city of thew ocuntry. Milk the public for every penny they can. Havent you noticed how lush and modern and beautiful many court houses, police stations, and local government offices are? They have to pay for it somehow and fines are the perfect addition to over taxing of citizens.
Because instead of raising taxes they target certain people for profit
Time to look into the city and what they do with the money that comes in ..
Why couldn't a neighbor, seeing he's not home and the grass is long, just go over and mow it for him? I would've helped him out. Our society needs to do better at helping each other without expecting money in return. I get "no one likes working for free", but that should be when it benefits a corporation with loads of money. Mowing his lawn for free would've just been a kind neighborly thing to do.
There should be a simple limited cap in place not a running unlimited tab.
I agree! Unfortunately not alot of people think like us.
I've done Property Preservation for vacant Bank Owned properties, and while most neighbors are fine with it, or indifferent, at least once a year somebody calls the cops, and every so often a Karen asks for proof that I am authorized to do yard work. You could play 'devil's advocate' ypu have still gotten the devil involved. LOL
@@user-dk8lo6fw3u 😳 seriously? I don't know what's wrong with people 🤦🏼♀️
That is a nice idea but in this day and age you do NOT want to start mowing someones grass without their permission. It could end very badly. The best intentions can come back to bite you in the ass today.
our city, after proper warnings from zoning, will hire a company to mow the property and send a bill to the owner and the bill is reasonable.
That sounds like a reasonable and fair solution.
We've all seen city and county grass much higher than that!
Well thanks. Now I have a new town to NOT move to or go to and spend ANY money.
Looks like the grass and bushes at city hall are overgrown and they need to be fined $30K
While nuisance and neglected property rules are important to protect property values and safety, the fines should not be so punitive as to force the forfeiture of property. $500. per day is sheer bullying on the part of the city and is egregious and excessive in nature. You know they (probably) do it so that the councilmembers can force a sale, and buy properties cheap, and get rich off the lower-income residents who are snow birds or whos landscapers flake out on them, or when their dealing with a death in the family. Snag a house while the owner's out of state, and pocket a rental property bringing in passive income. its all a scam. When they become politicians, they have named themselves as crooks and slime.
Florida sure has its fair share of crooks! The city hired a "crisis PR firm"?? What does that even mean? Rather than actually dealing with the issue, they skirt around it and issue tens of thousands in fines for their residents. I bet you're onto something here! If they actually cared, they would hire someone to mow it for half the daily fine amount and it'd solve the problem. Send the owner the bill. No one is getting hurt $30K over this guy having grass too long, what a scam!
These city's that do this crap need to look at themselves. I've seen 3ft high weeds growing in city lots and even right next to City Hall in one place. When I lived in Fort Lauderdale you would see hundreds or even thousands of weeds growing in and on public property and the city wouldn't do a damn thing about it.
That's because city's do not foreclose on themselves. The city would have eventually foreclosed on this property due to those unaddressed, unpaid excessive lien enforcement fees and allow their buddies to back door in to scoop up his property.
Check the freezers and all offshore accounts of the commissioners
Florida where the entire government is a MICKEY MOUSE OPERATION! NO OFFENSE TO MICKEY
Thats what happens when more and more North East implants take over the city councils. They bring crooked behaviors to feel at home, the one they left for being too crooked.
stay Salty. at least we aren't a liberal craphole
Congratulations IJ on another win!
Remember when we were a free people? Me either...
"Hey I know lets charge people $30k for a $300 problem then give them a 75% discount if they ask for it". This is how Dunedin and US hospitals both think. They do not care how despicable they are.
the person that is complaing about the tall grass,,,wait till you see what your house will look like in hell
Dunedin Pinellas County. Wow.
Seriously?
I guess the free state of Florida is not so free.
2:54 So my question is this grass not to high?? If people have to mow the grass why doesn't the city follow the same rules.
The judge who said that it fines were lawful needs to be run out of country. That level amounts to violation of the takings clause. I think the city should have been hit with penalties in excess of the amount they tried to fine the landowner.
Politicians and lawyers alot of times just sound like a bunch of bullies who are given power
Removed the unnatural lawn and put fruit trees and native flowers and let it grow into an oasis.
St.Petersburg is a bit nicer, but they still bring home owners to code enforcement cases over silly things like deterioration to the driveway aprons and missing glass window panes
No way. I will never live in this city
"Small Government" in Florida.
I wouldn’t have paid them a dime and I wouldn’t have settled.
Then they would have just foreclosed on your home and maybe even put you into jail.
Who sets the amount of the daily fines ?????
$500/day for a unkept lawn? Wow. He was out of town so they more than likely sent him notices. Lower them fines to a more reasonable amount for first time offenders.
Ridiculous. It's grass. It grows.
Why not cut his grass and send him the bill
LOOK AT THE WEEDS IN FRONT OF CITY HALL
OK FOR THEM BUT NOT YOU
This isn't illegal? My city will mow mine for $600! How does it get to $30,000?
Settled for 8000 are you kidding me? Look at that fancy new City Hall.!! that’s what they’re paying for bunch of crooks
Other crimes to go after wtf
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Government hurting for money.
I remember this story!!!
Karens are job security for the zoning dept. They also sell real estate on the side!! The karen and the zoning dept people!! Its a racket, not a solution!!
The City of Dunedin failed it's citizens and humanity by assessing these asinine fines for tall grass. Not much different than some of the criminal HOA assessments that we see being applied "just because they can". And we wonder why people reach a breaking point and 'go postal'. Just another city I would live in nor near.
Okay I think it's time to start voting some people out of that office
Must be some Karen who complained. Go touch some grass.
$500 a day ..
It seems like tall grass would be more environmentally, conscious, and we all know that cities are full of that shit
That guy has a lot of excuses
How many years were those fines accumulated?? I hope he had to pay some of the fines. If laws aren’t enforced then what’s the point!!
Cut the grass….
The zoning dept i bet has NO ONE TO CUT THE GRASS!! AND THE SHERIFF DOESNT HAVE ANY INMATES TO CUT IT EITHER!! ALL THE ZONING DEPT DOES IS THREATEN TO KEEP FINEING THE OWNER WITHOUT ANY SOLUTION FOR ANY REASON!!
I HAVE A KAREN NEXT DOOR AND ALL KAREN DOES IS COMPLAIN, ABOUT EVERYTHING SHE CAN. AND THE ZONING DEPT IS JUST AS BAD. THEY HAVE NO SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM!
Great, its a fire hazzard.
This is domestic terrorism
Still think government is there for you....
This story is ridiculous. Fine a guy for not cutting his grass? What the blank is wrong with the people that run this state. Floridians are getting abused.
So tired of listening to homeowners complain complain complain about everything they get their own self into from squatters to Airbnb scams home repair scams insurance scams.... None of you sound like you can adequately own a home in the first place.
🎇🤗🕋
Welcome to Ron DeSaster's FL!
Should of taken care of your property
Free jail for all government officials!
🎶Land of the free🎶....Where?