Joe James, who lives on S. Madison Street, was cited in June by Cortez code enforcement officer Robert Lindvall for a code violation. James was instructed to put up a privacy fence that obstructed the public’s view of his backyard. James constructed the fence, and the case was closed in August.
However, in October, then-interim building director Sam Proffer reopened the city’s case against James when he discovered James had taken the fence down.
At a trial Monday before municipal Judge James Shaner, James insisted Lindvall and Proffer had trespassed on his property in order to obtain evidence. He said they had walked down his driveway, passed numerous “no trespassing” signs and taken photos of his backyard.
“You can’t break the law to enforce it supposedly,” James told Shaner during his testimony. “I’ve had stuff in my yard for 32 years, and I’ve never had a complaint until Bobby lawn cop shows up and thinks he’s going to save the city of Cortez.”
The trial Monday stemmed from the October reopening of the case and did not involve pictures taken by Lindvall. Proffer, who is now city director of planning and building, said he took photos using a smartphone and was standing on the street adjacent to the sidewalk when he took the photos. He said he used his camera’s zoom when taking the photos.
James said he was not told how long he was required to have the fence in place. He didn’t like the fence, so he took it down, he said. If Lindvall and Proffer were trespassing on his property, he shouldn’t be charged with anything, James said.
“What I have in my backyard is nobody’s business,” he said. “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”
Shaner said that even if James produced evidence that Lindvall or Proffer were trespassing, he did not have the authority to charge them with an offense. That, he said, would be the police department’s responsibility.
Proffer said the car parts and other items in James’s backyard represented an “accumulation of junk,” which is a violation of city codes. He said James’ yard would be referred to as a junk or storage yard if it was in a different location, but junk and storage yards are not allowed in the neighborhood where James resides.
Though Shaner said he did not condone any action by a city employee, he ruled in favor of the city, saying that the items in James’ yard fit in to the city’s definition of “junk.” City Attorney Mike Green said the city just wanted to see the fence put back up.
“We have an accumulation of junk which is a violation of city code,” Green said. “We reached a sensible solution with the fence, but that was not kept.”
Shaner handed a James a suspended $500 fine, which James would be required to pay if he did not put the fence back up within 20 days. An additional $500 fine would be added for every 30 days James continued not to put up the fence.
“I don’t want to see this go on forever,” Shaner said.
Outside City Hall after the ruling, James said he planned to reconstruct the fence, which would take him about a half hour.