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abe30303 OP t1_iwu9c5d wrote

The County says to a reporter:

"The county says even though the adjacent property is not hers, she is legally responsible for making sure the grass is trimmed in front of that property."

The Thirteenth Amendment (against slavery) states:

"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

The skinny on this is that individuals living next to land owned by hedge funds / REITs are legally required to maintain that land. Literally slavery. They do this because people do not know their rights and the county cannot serve process upon these absentee owners who let the property go to seed.

This is not a one-day thing. This county has required FOR FIFTEEN YEARS that this land be maintained / mowed / trimmed / cleaned by the homeowner next door or she GOES TO JAIL.

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Canopach t1_iwu9pk8 wrote

Better title: "Here's Some Clickbait - Let's See If You Fall For It."

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abe30303 OP t1_iwu9wqa wrote

"The county says even though the adjacent property is not hers, she is legally responsible for making sure the grass is trimmed in front of that property."

The Thirteenth Amendment (against slavery) states:

"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

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abe30303 OP t1_iwuanuk wrote

I am the homeowner in the story. Kinda wanted to keep my account relatively anon but here we are, so screw it.

Code Enforcement officials have literally told me for fifteen years that if I do not clean and mow that front yard that I DO NOT OWN, then I will go to jail. I do not own that property. My patience has run out, and I am now fighting this in court.

The land next to mine is owned by a house-flipping company that the county cannot serve process to, so they demand that I maintain it.

Cobb county is forcing other people in the county living next to these properties to maintain them or face jail + fines in code enforcement court. So it's not just me.

Two of my up-street neighbors were being harassed for years to keep up a whole house next to them or they would go to jail. Eventually they refused to the point it went to court and the house was torn down.

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BabyLegsOShanahan t1_iwubmbr wrote

The county said they were sent I error. Why would you post something like this in the third person. Why can’t they serve a company? It’s a literal entity. You let them punk you. Again, I hope they ban you.

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chillinwithmypizza t1_iwubolz wrote

Regardless, state and county stuff are such a fucking nuisance and seemingly unfuckeitable unless you know someone or are a prominent (wealthy) fixture in the community (local political sphere).

My girlfriend traded her car in to a major dealership for a newer version of her old car but the person at the dmv failed to remove the old vehicle from her profile when she got it registered and paid the sales tax(which is a super trash law in arkansas). So she owed property taxes for both cars at the end of the year even though she no longer owned the other car, and had proof which their system could access via vin numbers which would show dealership trade/ current ownership!

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MonkeyDaddy4 t1_iwuckja wrote

Not a lawyer, but...

Sounds like they're contracting you. Bill them $1000 account creation and setup fee, and $2000/hr.

Put a lein on the county if they don't pay.

Fines paid off, and they will likely find that those laws (if they even exist) are wrong. Win win.

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WaytoomanyUIDs t1_iwuflua wrote

One of those areas appears to be an easement of some sort. Now I'm not familiar with Georgia property law, but very often homeowners are considered responsible for adjacent easements.

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BirdsbirdsBURDS t1_iwug15w wrote

Property rights are property rights. It’s not your house so it’s not your obligation. I don’t know Cobb county but I know bullshit. You’re not the owner. If they (the city) continue to harass you about it, call the city council and the mayor and make a very blunt and obvious statement that you are going to take this to court with the state about it, because you’re not responsible for what isn’t yours.

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nofftastic t1_iwunlml wrote

Clickbait title aside, this sounds like some BS they're trying to pull. I would definitely fight the citations/tickets, but you have to do it in a calm, rational way. Claiming they're trying to enslave you isn't going to convince a judge to side with you, because (to be blunt) this isn't slavery.

You need to form a reasoned, clear argument, and that starts with answering this question: which code are they citing you for violating?

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abe30303 OP t1_iwuwxdl wrote

They are citing grass and property maintenance regulations... nothing when it comes to forcing neighbors to maintain the land of others. They just say "you're responsible now. Do the work or go to jail for a citation."

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abe30303 OP t1_iwv1eeh wrote

It, and all the parcels of land in the center of the neighborhood, are owned by an investment company. The parcel is in fact owned by a company. It may be an easement, but the land itself is actually owned by an investor.

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abe30303 OP t1_iwv1nav wrote

I am trying. It's extremely difficult to get a lawyer that is willing to go to bat against one of the largest and most powerful county governments in the state.

I can't even get the feds to go after a former county agency head who bilked half a million dollars from the federal COVID relief funds... what does that tellya?

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abe30303 OP t1_iwv1wv9 wrote

I've been telling them about the fact that I am not the owner of this strip of land for fifteen years now. Finally now it's come to a head over an abandoned truck that I could not get any tow company to remove... this whoooooole issue is going to be litigated.

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abe30303 OP t1_iwv35uo wrote

And we are assuming I will be alive long enough to even see the court date.

I was so stressed that I was at the office all night last night because I could not sleep. I came home at about 8am this morning to find the support beams for my small back porch chopped apart.

Then my dog nibbled on something that was laying among the leaves in the front yard. He had a massive vomiting fit.

Amazing timing, I tellya.

After I blew the whistle on HAMP fraud committed by one of the largest banks in the USA, every single vehicle I bought broke down really quickly. My first car's brake line showed no signs of failure or leaks or damage but was bone dry when I was trying to get off the interstate. I had to perform a controlled collision into the guardrail to save my own life. Then both a car + van failed at the same time and would not start up - a mechanic said the engines had been destroyed. After that, another vehicle I bought was found with flattened tires and dog poo smeared on the windshield.

If I die, I did not commit suicide. I am determined to survive out of spite.

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abe30303 OP t1_iwv4guj wrote

That may be true for where you live, and half the battle is finding the lawyer... I sued a large company for ADA rights, pro se, and won in federal civil court. I spent a year trying to find an attorney and no attorney would take the case because the DAMAGES were deemed too small. So I took my own case to court and won my minimal amount of damages.

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nofftastic t1_iwvt58w wrote

Would you happen to have the citation handy? It should have a reference to the city code that they claim is being violated. If you have the exact code, I'd be happy to look it up and offer advice on how to craft an argument in court.

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