What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida
Hello All,
In early 2014 my brother began work repairing an existing 40 ft. section of fence on my then-recently deceased mother's home(where I also live)...without a permit. Received a violation notice. Procrastinated. Applied for a permit a month later and was denied due to a gate latching issue. Procrastinated some more. Returned to apply again a few months afterward but was told by the clerk that my brother, as executor of the will, would have to be the one signing all the paperwork. Well he couldn't be corralled at this point as he was, and is, currently dealing with a tumor that is forcing his eyeball out of its socket. It looks downright disturbing and he isn't receiving medical care, and honestly, he just looks like death. He also doesn't seem to care about anything at all really, least of all fence permits. We spoke rarely before my mother's passing, and even less so now. He simply doesn't make himself available.
In October 2014 notice was sent to my home for my mother(not the estate of.) to appear at a magistrate hearing regarding this matter. Obviously she didn't make it. And I also didn't bother notifying them AGAIN that she had passed(apparently this information didn't make it beyond the clerk's desk as she was already aware of her passing). Received a letter two weeks later showing that this matter had been adjudicated(now against the estate of.) and that we were now being assessed a $100 per diem fine.
Thus began a self-destructive stretch of inaction on my part. A little over a year in total. Lien was recorded this last October.
Finally returned this December and got a permit approved. Contractor begins work tomorrow.
Questions:
They said after all work and inspections were completed that I could apply for a mitigation hearing. I figured the main mitigating factor is that the new fence, albeit a permit-less one, is a lot more secure than the rotten, rickety one it replaced. And that it has no external handle/unlocking mechanism and therefore wandering kids wouldn't be at risk. After all, code enforcement is all about safety!...right, guys? Guys?
Beyond that...I haven't much. There really isn't an excuse. But I can tell you, if you've lived with someone for 37 unbroken years, namely your mother, and one day, like any of the other days that preceded it, there's a knock at the door, and a bunch of strangers in a big blaring truck come to collect your loved one and take them away like an old couch, never to be returned...well, it affects a guy. It just does. Not for a day or days, or even months. Yes, I understand life goes on, but for the year and a half afterward nothing mattered. Process simply didn't matter. I resented the notices taped on my door and the people who brought them. I had no interest in appeasing them. The mind is in an altered state after such events, a fog that only clears with time. And now reality has boomeranged back.
Anyways, if you do the math the fees are now up around $40,000. So what might I expect in terms of a reduction(hopefully)? Also, as a last legal resort, if the City isn't willing to deal, does the fact the magistrate hearing announcement that was addressed to my mother, specifically, and not the estate of., offer any type of loophole or reset for when the daily fines could begin? After all, I wasn't allowed "my day in court".
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Hello All,
In early 2014 my brother began work repairing an existing 40 ft. section of fence on my then-recently deceased mother's home(where I also live)...without a permit. Received a violation notice. Procrastinated. Applied for a permit a month later and was denied due to a gate latching issue. Procrastinated some more. Returned to apply again a few months afterward but was told by the clerk that my brother, as executor of the will, would have to be the one signing all the paperwork. Well he couldn't be corralled at this point as he was, and is, currently dealing with a tumor that is forcing his eyeball out of its socket. It looks downright disturbing and he isn't receiving medical care, and honestly, he just looks like death. He also doesn't seem to care about anything at all really, least of all fence permits. We spoke rarely before my mother's passing, and even less so now. He simply doesn't make himself available.
In October 2014 notice was sent to my home for my mother(not the estate of.) to appear at a magistrate hearing regarding this matter. Obviously she didn't make it. And I also didn't bother notifying them AGAIN that she had passed(apparently this information didn't make it beyond the clerk's desk as she was already aware of her passing). Received a letter two weeks later showing that this matter had been adjudicated(now against the estate of.) and that we were now being assessed a $100 per diem fine.
Thus began a self-destructive stretch of inaction on my part. A little over a year in total. Lien was recorded this last October.
Finally returned this December and got a permit approved. Contractor begins work tomorrow.
Questions:
They said after all work and inspections were completed that I could apply for a mitigation hearing. I figured the main mitigating factor is that the new fence, albeit a permit-less one, is a lot more secure than the rotten, rickety one it replaced. And that it has no external handle/unlocking mechanism and therefore wandering kids wouldn't be at risk. After all, code enforcement is all about safety!...right, guys? Guys?
Beyond that...I haven't much. There really isn't an excuse. But I can tell you, if you've lived with someone for 37 unbroken years, namely your mother, and one day, like any of the other days that preceded it, there's a knock at the door, and a bunch of strangers in a big blaring truck come to collect your loved one and take them away like an old couch, never to be returned...well, it affects a guy. It just does. Not for a day or days, or even months. Yes, I understand life goes on, but for the year and a half afterward nothing mattered. Process simply didn't matter. I resented the notices taped on my door and the people who brought them. I had no interest in appeasing them. The mind is in an altered state after such events, a fog that only clears with time. And now reality has boomeranged back.
Anyways, if you do the math the fees are now up around $40,000. So what might I expect in terms of a reduction(hopefully)? Also, as a last legal resort, if the City isn't willing to deal, does the fact the magistrate hearing announcement that was addressed to my mother, specifically, and not the estate of., offer any type of loophole or reset for when the daily fines could begin? After all, I wasn't allowed "my day in court".
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
