Forced sale of your real estate

Spiffy · Jun 24, 2005

This hits too close to home for all of us, so if I get too political here, please delete my post instead of closing this thread.

Wrong decision, no doubt! Way to much opportunity for abuse by those who can afford to "grease the wheels of justice"!

Just to ease my mind somewhat, I have to find irony in the fact [despite, or in light of, earlier discussions] both the majority and the dissenting opion are of a "conservative basis" [I personally mostly vote one way, but it is litteraly the irony here soothing me; I don't think Junkman was far off saying you can't trust polititions regards of claims]:

the former trying to leave power to local government [or just to wimpy to stand againd the "powers that be", but justices are appointed for life supposedly to defeat that possibility]. The latter finding for our constitutional rights.

Anyway, barring the chance that another case presents itself in such a manor as to overturn this, the best we can do is put as pressure as possible on local and state governments to prevent it [no doubt that's probably easier for SD than some others, but we have to try].

Sigarms, I hope it never comes to that, but if we're talking business over true necessity, I hope I have the integrety to do the same.

GerardC, the question I have is "Why, when the rest of the world is fighting for democracy, DC is pushing for communism?" /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

MikePA · Jun 24, 2005

Sorry for the civics lesson, Danny, but you cannot vote Supreme Court Justices out. 
He's talking about voting the local officials who approved the eminent domain activity out of office not the Supreme Court justices.

riptides · Jun 24, 2005

I was dismayed and disturbed by this ruling. No way I thought to myself it would come to this.

I was on the other side of a public, not private, rezoning effort many years ago. Funny how the mailings coming to my house were all giving me information on eminent domain and nothing else. That is how the state government helped me out. No project plan, few public hearings, fewer impact studies. But we got a lot of information on how they could condemn our property and take it.

I guess the private developer will just mail me a check and a condemned sticker for my door with this ruling.

I am surprized by the lack of responses to this topic. Are we all in shock? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

-Mike Z. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

PhilNH5 · Jun 24, 2005

I felt that the supreme court was simply saying this is not a federal issue. The local officials ( states reights and all that) should have a better grasp of what is going on as opposed to the federal bench.

I agree this is a dark ruling. But the Supreme Court did not pass any law saying this can happen. They simply returned it to the state and local level.

Phil

riptides · Jun 24, 2005

( I agree this is a dark ruling. But the Supreme Court did not pass any law saying this can happen. They simply returned it to the state and local level. )

They in effect ruled that local/states rights out weight those of the individual. Looking even closer, local developer rights may overwhelm the individual too.

A sad day,

-Mike Z. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

timb · Jun 24, 2005

I also thought that the railroad rights-of-way were just that - a right-of-way i.e. easement through a piece of otherwise private property not outright ownership. And that right-of-way was supposed to revert back to the property owner of record when/if the railroad abandoned that right-of-way.

With the current 'rails-to-trails' programs it has become effectively a retro-active seisure with the state assuming ownership and there are many court cases trying to decide whether the original right-of-way was an easment or a deed transfer.

These new situations are flat out land grabs, no question of anything like an easement.

Cityboyfarmer · Jun 24, 2005

Can you just imagine the salivating over potental private property seizures by local county "Joe-Bob" governments right now? Think about your local government officials being approached by a big developer with promises of big tax dollars for his or her pet vote buying project. Folks, we have indeed entered a dark time in America.

Here is an interesting link to Neal Boortz site on this topic:

http://boortz.com/nuze/index.html " target="_blank"> http://boortz.com/nuze/index.html </a>

slowrev · Jun 24, 2005

TXDOT will now Eminent Domain a 1200' wide corridor that the Spanish company will have all the rights and franchise business for the next 50 years.
//
So we really did not beat the Spanish ? Remember the Alamo!

Ben

PitbullMidwest · Jun 24, 2005

( I also thought that the railroad rights-of-way were just that - a right-of-way i.e. easement through a piece of otherwise private property not outright ownership. And that right-of-way was supposed to revert back to the property owner of record when/if the railroad abandoned that right-of-way. )

No necessarily so. The Railroads were given the rights to timber, coal and land use provided it was for "railroad purposes". This included building stock yards or even entire towns owned by the railroads. My home town is currently in a law suite with BNSF over just this issue. The City has a contract dating to 1830 that allows the railroad to use riverfront property "for railroad purposes" as long as they maintain the primary repair shop within our city limits. This agreement ended when BNSF moved their primary shop to Kansas.

Did the property revert to it's previous owner? No. Case history is that the goverment deeds full ownership of the right of way and properties granted for "railroad purposes" to the railroad in graditute for the expansion and economic growth they created and for their service to the nation during wartime.

This project in Texas just goes to show that the robber barons aren't gone afterall.

dullpain · Jun 24, 2005

Yep! A sad day for the little guy, our rights are disappearing faster and faster. Used to think I would not see a revolution in this country in my lifetime. Possibly I will now?? If the politicians, judges, etc. that are in power don't cease with these type (to include taxation)of decisions it may come to revolution. You can just push a man so far - and then you wind up with a monster. I'll keep my guns clean , and the reloader handy.