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California: easement and locked gate

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PJnU

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? California

I desperately need some help so thanks in advance and sorry if it's too long...

I have owned a piece of property for approx ten years and live on it for about seven years. The property is accessed through a private road that has a locked gate off of a county road. All of the property behind the locked gate has road easement (60 ft), which was granted back in the 70's when the land was split and sold. The only full time residents off this road are myself and my neighbors. Since we have moved in I have made substantial improvements to the road, without any reimbursement as their was no road maintence agreement just my neighbor saying they would put in an automatic gate as an in kind gesture. Our neighbors own the first (2-3 yrs.) and last (20 yrs.) piece of the property on the road.

About six months ago my neighbor began doing things to the gate (i.e. stacking rocks and barb wire) that hindered our easement rights. He did eventually move them, but only after quite sometime. At the same time he moved the location of the gate by creating a narrow barb wire channel (approx. twenty feet in from the orginal gate placement). He also began messing with our combo lock on the gate. We have had to replace the lock on numerous occassions as it has shown up missing, superglued, beat with a hammer, etc. We eventually went to latches as they are much cheaper. This has caused us and our guests to be locked in/out of our property on numerous occassions. Law Enforcement are not being helpful as they say they can't prove it is them doing this to us.

This week our neighbors now say that since they are the property owners in which the gate is installed they have a right to only have one lock (theirs) on the gate as long as they hide a key for us somewhere and that the gate MUST be locked at all times. This seems ridiculous to me that these neighbors can legally play these games and not be held accountable. Can some one make all these changes to the road easement without permission by others?
 


PJnU

Junior Member
I don't understand what your saying... compromise on what? Should we be okay with being locked in/out whenever this person decides that we should be. We have done nothing to these people other then try to use our legally deeded easement and spend money fixing up a road that they benefit from. Yes it is the only way in or out and no talking to them doesn't help as we have already tried that and it doesn't work... I don't like being yelled at so we avoid them as much as possible.
 

PJnU

Junior Member
We do not nor have we ever locked them out. The gate is opened via a chain link... meaning when you unlock your lock, the chain and gate opens. The problem is they destroy our lock and then we can't open it while their lock still lets them into the property. Hopefully someone can read this that does have experience with this issue or knowledge of the law as I'm looking for an answer to my orginal question about changes to the easement without notification or permission of others...
 

PJnU

Junior Member
Although that would give me some satisfaction... no can do as I'm sure it's against the law!!
 

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
PJnU said:
Although that would give me some satisfaction... no can do as I'm sure it's against the law!!

My response:

No, it's not. Someone has impeded your Constitutional right to ingress and egress of your home. You have 4th and 6th Amendment rights to be secure in your home and, if you can't get to it to be secure, then you have every right to eliminate that which is impeding your rights.

Get the bulldozer.

IAAL
 

ms.magoo

Member
easement and locked gate

Okay I like the bulldozer idea, lol. Life would be so simple if we all had a bulldozer eh ? But, seemings the neighbours want to play childish games on your easement, then its time ya got tough. Get an attorney an start a lawsuit against them folks. Then get your lawyer to put a motion in to stop those ugly neighbours from hampering your access. Be it a sieze an disist Order, or a interloctuary Order, to stop the nonsense that is going on. Keep records of all the damages they've incurred on your locks an such as well, think evidence. An above all, I wish you luck. ;)
 

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