By Henry Lamb
web posted May 23, 2005
For years, Jesse James Hardy tried valiantly to avoid the day when the State of Florida would take his 160-acre “patch of heaven,” 30 miles east of Naples. He spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in engineering studies and legal fees, trying to convince the state that his land was not necessary to the Everglades Restoration Project. The state disagreed.
The court ordered one final mediation session between Jesse and the State to see if Jesse would become a “willing seller,” rather than another victim of eminent domain. The courts had already taken the land of nearly 17,000 other landowners. Jesse was the last hold-out in a 55,000 acre parcel which lies 50 miles from the Everglades.
Jesse was accompanied by two attorneys, one of whom had filed an extensive lawsuit on Jesse’s behalf, alleging a variety of illegal actions on the part of state and federal agencies. The other attorney was an eminent domain specialist.
“We can win this, Jesse, if you can just hang on,” one attorney advised. Of course, there was no guarantee that Jesse would win, and the case, filed in federal court, could take years. Jesse’s only income, besides a small disability check he receives from the military, was the sale of dirt from the excavation of what he planned to be four, 20-acre fishing lakes he was building on his property.
Collier County approved the four-lake plan three years ago, but after the state declared it wanted the land, the state asked the county to withdraw the permit. The county complied, and refused to renew Jesse’s permit, leaving him with no source of income, or any hope of completing his dream.
There was no way Jesse could “hang on” for the years it would take for a final decision on his lawsuit.
The state had offered Jesse as much as $27,500 per acre for his land. But when Jesse looked around the area for comparable land, prices ranged from $50,000 to $100,000 per acre. He could not replace his land for the price the state offered.
The other attorney pointed out to Jesse, that there was no doubt that the court would take the land. The only question was the amount of “just compensation” the court would pay, and that decision would be made by a jury, not of Jesse’s peers, but jurors selected from affluent retirees.
Hardy at one of his ponds |
For years, local media have portrayed Jesse as a stubborn hermit, living in a shack in a wilderness, who in blocking the all-important Everglades Restoration Project. A jury would not likely be sympathetic with Jesse’s values.
The marathon negotiating session lasted until 10:30 pm, when Jesse finally became a “willing seller:” he agreed to accept $4.95 million, about $31,000 per acre. He has to vacate the property by December 1.
The money was not paid to Jesse, but to the court, in order to ensure that all outstanding claims against Jesse would be paid. Claims are being filed that Jesse says he does not owe. The money is tied up, and the judge has scheduled a hearing for June 26. In the meantime, Jesse has no resources to arrange for another place to live. He doesn’t even know how much will be left, or when it will be available.
Prior to the settlement, the county would not allow Jesse to sell the dirt from his excavations after his permit expired last year. Now, however, by arrangement with the state, the county is allowing a contractor to haul away the dirt.
Jesse is angry. He watched the county, state, and federal governments conspire to deprive him of his home and his dreams for the future. The price at which he became a “willing seller,” is well below replacement costs, but above the amount he would likely have gotten from a jury or a court decree.
Jesse is just another victim of government’s relentless quest to acquire private property. There are similar cases in progress in virtually every state, which do not get the publicity Jesse has generated. Once government gets private property in its cross-hairs, few people have the money, the time, or the expertise to mount a defense. The entire saga of Jesse’s years-long battle is recorded at his web site.
Henry Lamb is the executive vice president of the Environmental Conservation Organization (ECO), and chairman of Sovereignty International.
Other related stories: (open in a new window)
Jesse’s last strike by Henry Lamb (November 1, 2004)
All across the United States the rights of landowners are being sacrificed to the whims of environmentalists. Henry Lamb reports on one of those victims, Jesse Hardy of Florida
From HERE
I AM NOT A LAWYER DISCLAIMER
Disclaimer – This document and any files transmitted with it are confidential and contain privileged or copyright information. You must not present this message to another party without gaining permission from the sender. If you are not the intended recipient you must not copy, distribute or use this email or the information contained in it for any purpose other than to notify us.
If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately, and delete this message from your system. We do not guarantee that this material is free from viruses or any other defects although due care has been taken to minimize the risk.
Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender, except where the sender specifically states them to be the views of someone else.
If you need a life or other expert assistance, the services of a competent priest/rabbi/imam/shaman/accountant/doctor/shrink/lawyer or whatever you are into should be sought.
This blog/email/webpage may contain copyrighted ((c)) material. The fair use of a copyrighted work, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C., § 107 of the US Copyright Law. This material is distributed for nonprofit educational purposes. If you are the copyright owner and you disagree with my use of your copyrighted material, please let me know and I will replace such material with a note saying that you are a censor, book burner and evil person.
I / this email / blog / webpage / website / letter (hereafter “this website”) will abide by, adhere to, accept responsibility for, endure under and act with respect toward the following disclaimer:
By accessing this website, a web browser (hereafter user) is consents that s/he is familiar with, understands and absolutely accepts the following disclaimer:
The views expressed by the authors on this website do not necessarily reflect the views of this website, those who link to this website, the author’s mother, father, sister, brother, uncle, aunt, grandparents, cousins, step relations, any other blood relative and the author himself, this website’s web host, template designer, or any other organization, service, motto, logo, insignia or avatar in any way connected with this website.
Comments on this website are the sole responsibility of their writers and the writer will take full responsibility, liability, and blame for any libel or litigation that results from something written in or as a direct result of something written in a comment. The accuracy, completeness, veracity, honesty, exactitude, factuality and politeness of comments are not guaranteed.
All trademarks, service marks, collective marks, design rights, personality rights, copyrights, registered names, mottos, logos, avatars, insignias and marks used or cited by this website are the property of their respective owners and this website in no way accepts any responsibility for an infringement on one of the above.
Although it may claim otherwise, this website does not offer legal, medical, psychiatric, veterinary, gynecological, archaeological, astronomical, astrological, ontological, paleontological, philosophical, axiological, audiological, bacteriological, mineralogical, criminological, terminological, dermatological, ecclesiastical, campanological, phrenological, phonological, technological, hematological, campanological, neurological, psychobiological, urological, ufological, typological,, mythological, hydrological, xylological, zoological, logical or any other kind of professional advice. Nothing on this website should be construed as professional advice including, but not limited to, the above list.
The information provided on this website is of a general, broad, sweeping, large, wide-ranging, wide-reaching and wide-spread nature and cannot substitute for the advice of a licensed professional or chiropractor. A competent authority with specialized knowledge is the only one who can address the specific circumstances of your predicament. We can try, but this disclaimer frees us of any liability if negative consequences result from our efforts.
Please contact your local bar association, law society, neighborhood association of jurists, medical board, county hospital, phone book, online directory, local emergency number in your jurisdiction, mother or Google to find a or obtain a referral to a competent professional. If you do not have reasonable means of contacting an attorney-at-law, lawyer, civil law notary, barrister, solicitor, medical professional, coroner or any other professional in the area of your inquiry, meaning you are an orphaned, computer-illiterate social hazard, please exit this window and get your life in order.
This website has no control over the information you access via outbound link(s) in the post text, sidebar, header, footer or comment sections. This website does not endorse linked website(s), cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information found by following said links or the correctness of any analysis found therein and should not be held responsible for it or the consequences of a user’s use of that information. If you are curious about the veracity of something you find, please follow the directions in the above paragraph and consult the appropriate experts.
This website may inadvertently link to content that is obscene, prurient, useless, hate-filled, poisonous, pornographic, frivolous, empty, rotten, bad, disgusting, hostile, repulsive, virulent, infectious, malignant, antagonistic, irritating, obnoxious, harsh, embittered, rancorous, resentful, acrimonious, pestilential, baneful, noxious, toxic, venomous, pernicious or repetitive. This website in no way condones, endorses or takes responsibility for such content.
This website publishes content regularly and said content is maintained in reference to the protections afforded it under local, provincial, state, martial, federal, international and mafia law. Publication of information found on this website may be in violation of the laws of the city, county, state, country or other jurisdiction from where you are viewing this website’s content and laws in your jurisdiction may not protect or allow the same kinds of speech or distribution. In the case that the laws of the jurisdiction where this website’s content is maintained and those of yours conflict, this website does not encourage, condone, facilitate, recommend or protect the violation of any laws and cannot be responsible for any violations of such laws.
Because the World Wide Web is an integrated net of communication, discussion and litigation, this website encourages the distribution of its content. Cross, reciprocal or just plain friendly hyperlinking is consistent with this information sharing and this disclaimer should not be construed as a condemnation of any linking practices. That said, any reproduction of this website’s content must credit the website by name and Uniform Resource Locator (URL). Should you link to this domain or use, reproduce, republish, regurgitate, repeat, reiterate, rebound, reecho, reverberate, mimic, imitate, parrot or duplicate the information contained on this website, you alone are responsible for that action and should, under threat of litigation, credit this website by name and URL.
This website is not recommended for inmates, ingrates or anyone professing an irrational fear of cats or any other mammal, those who have a penchant for time wasting, illiterates and lawyers. Women who are pregnant or may become pregnant or are nursing are advised to consult their husband and physician before reading this website. Eating before reading may result in unhealthy indigestion. Not recommended for people over the age of 120.
Some of the above comes from Herche’s Blog Disclaimer.
I can only provide my opinions, thoughts, and ideas. Your opinions, thoughts, and ideas are just as good as mine. You should always make your own decisions and/or seek professional advice before implementing my thoughts, opinions, ideas or what I say. You have no reason to believe anything I believe or say. I am just a ordinary person, like you. All pictures, logos, and copyrighted materials are property of their respective owners/companies. I am not responsible for any comments left on this blog. I am not responsible for any content of advertising clicked from this blog. I am not a lawyer and do not take any responsibility for rashes, financial ruin, or anything else that follows from applying this information. All content is strictly prohibited from being republished unless proper approval is received from me. If you like a story and would like to send it to someone via email, you may do so. I am not responsible for any accuracy of website content nor take responsibility of any content. You should assume that I benefit from showing advertising on this website. I am not responsible for any advertising content.
