"Dave" wrote in message
ink.net...
"zxcvbob" wrote in message
...
Dave wrote:
"zxcvbob" wrote in message
...
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"zxcvbob" wrote in message
...
Sprayed broadleaf herbicide and who knows what else thru the chain
link fence from my neighbor's yard into my garden again. Killed my
squash, and the tomatillo closest to the fence looks stunted a bit.

Last time they did this they left a calling card. This time, I don't
know for /sure/ that it was them because there was no little sign
left in the yard. I'm gonna call the county Monday and find out who
they sent out to spray the fence line (the county owns the house) and
then complain to the EPA this time instead of complaining directly to
Chemlawn.

I don't think the EPA will yank their applicator's license, but there
ought to be a stiff fine for applying pesticides without following
the label restrictions.

Bob

You're in luck. According to a former town justice here, what the
chem-pigs did falls under the heading of civil trespass. That law
doesn't only apply to people entering property without authorization,
but also objects, animals and substances. Once you find out who the
chem-pigs were, call the town office and find out what's involved in
taking them to small claims court.

You may also want to tally up the hours you spent on the garden,
multiply by a reasonable number (say $175 per hour), and include that
in the claim. Finally, check with your state's environmental agency as
to whether there's a safe method for planting in that spot again. If
it involves new topsoil and hiring laborers, it gets lumped into the
claim. Finally, some judges will issue an injunction preventing any
further spraying within a certain distance of the fence line. The
local judge did that for me. It ***REQUIRED*** the police to arrest my
neighbor and her chem-pig applicator if she repeated her crime. She
never sprayed again.

In this case, the "neighbor" is Olmsted County, MN. The person living
in the house (rented from the county) is not a problem. The county
itself is sending people out to spray.

The county is most likely immune from any civil lawsuits, small claims
or otherwise. I have to go after the applicator, or find a criminal
statute violated by the county.



So, I guess Agent Orange on your children, nevermind your garden, and
pets is okay as long as a government entity is responsible for
subcontracting its application.


Is that really what you think I said? That's it's OK because the govt
did it?

Bob

"The county is most likely immune from any civil lawsuits, small claims or
otherwise."

Dave


That's now. Tomorrow is another story. And there's also the individual
person who operated the sprayer. If they own a home, the neighborly thing to
do would be to make them afraid they're going to lose it to settle the
lawsuit.......