Man Goes To Jail For Not Planting Grass In His Yard

[matcom]

<snip>

WHITE CLOUD -- A Newaygo County man could spend another weekend behind bars if he doesn't take care of his yard.

David Burch says he tried to seed the yard last fall but it wouldn't take root. This all stems from a contractor who failed to sod the yard in the first place. Now a judge is saying, do the yard or do the time.

"The people who work at the court, at the jail, thought it was funny," Burch said. "They said there had to be more. I said, 'No, it's just because I don't have grass growing.' They said, 'You're in here for that?'"

He claims he is not skirting the law. Burch said the contractor for his new house is responsible for the lawn. But a White Cloud city ordinance states otherwise.

http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=6725421

[EstimatedProphet]

1. Remind me not to live there

This must be the most authoritarian place in the US. Maybe they also send people to jail for painting their house the "wrong" color.

[mainegreen]

2. That criminal. I hate these lawn abusing scum. Lock him up and throw away the keys!

:sarcasm:
Isn't there a fucking drought or something out there?

[AllegroRondo]

3. what kind of city REQUIRES grass?

In El Paso, some people would replace the grass with white gravel and cacti. Looked great, and didnt use water. Whats the problem?

[BlueIris]

8. I assumed he lived in some kind of gated community.

I can't get the link to load, so I'll just have to keep guessing.

Some cities really are taking an obscene interest in devlopment, though, on the grounds that it helps their local economies. So, the violations this guy is in trouble for might seem like perfectly reasonable rules to enforce in the eyes of the municipal authorities.

[Blue Diadem]

15. Here's another link with pictures..looks almost rural

http://www.wzzm13.com/news/local/grmetro_article.aspx?storyid=77297

[gollygee]

23. I can't imagine White Cloud having any gated communities

it's a very small town.

This is just small-town politics. I swear people in small towns can go crazy over the smallest things.

[chaska]

4. Another victim of the lawnmower cult....

Our society is fucking insane.

So many of our laws are now obsolete because of global warming/peak oil. Things have to change.

I've stopped mowing my yard (fortunately, I can get away with it). I'm going to let it go and see what happens. At some point I may or may not get an electric mower, but I'm done with gas mowers forever.

[pokerfan]

21. Modern push reel mowers are pretty sweet

http://www.reelmowerguide.com

Plus you can mow early in morning (without disturbing the neighbors) before it gets hot.

[formerrepuke]

5. All my grass is brown......I refuse to water it- ever.....n/t

[Ms_Dem_Meanor]

6. Makes me glad I live in an apartment. n/t

[Hugin]

7. ...

Dayum, I must be losing it... Usually, I'd be all over a -HEAD-line like that one. :/

*sigh*

[barb162]

9. I'd like to see the ordinance that requires grass

or does the ordinance just say it can't be an eyesore.

[cobalt1999]

10. glad that's not my neighborhood, because I'm removing all my grass.

Going with native plants and natural ground cover. I'd be headed off to jail.

[Richard Steele]

11. As Chaska mentioned above, our society is fucking insane.

That's all there is to it.

[trof]

12. You can get busted for having grass and for not having grass.

A real no win.

[Q3JR4]

13. That is totally f*cked up.

I'd call all media outlets I could and then tear the lawn up. After all it's MY lawn not the state's or the city's.

Isn't that the very concept of "private property" the conservatives like to scream about?

[HuffleClaw]

14. LAWN TERROR!!!!

bureaucracy run amok.

[texanwitch]

16. How is he going put some grass down if he is jail.

This is just stupid.

If this guy is waiting for his contractor to show up I hope he enjoys jail.

Just go out and get some grass.

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

18. If his neighbors don't like it then they could donate a small portion of theirs,

(in a few weeks it will have grown back) or they can just SHUT THE F*** UP!

[texanwitch]

19. I agree his yard should be how he wants it to be.

From what I read he waiting for the contractor to show up, they don't show up.

I have a friend who was promised grass that never showed up, she did it herself.

What we have is a case of bullies and a hard head.

He is missing work over this, how is he going to pay his housenote.

In my neighborhood the new townhouse people are the bullies, trying to chase everyone else out.

They move into a old neighborhood and try to change the way we live.

Now they want no parking of cars in the yards, just the driveways.

The kicker is that if you pour cement, shell, or gravel over your grass you can then park there.

What sense does that make.

I feel for this guy, but he could loose his house over this.

[Crabby Appleton]

17. whacha in for dude? grass, yeh me too. nt

[Fox Mulder]

20. That is just fucked up.

[Xipe Totec]

22. Try a different strain of grass - Cannabis Indica nt

[Sanity Claws]

24. They said that every house has to have a yard, not a lawn

If that is what the ordinance says, then he has a yard without grass. What's the big deal? The yard looks barren, not an eyesore.

[fudge stripe cookays]

25. Until the dandelions take root....

and fuck up all the neighbors' lawns as well.

As someone trying to ready their house to sell, I hate seeing eyesores in the neighborhood because their "don't give a shit" attitude will affect how much money I get for my house. To have a good neighbor, you have to be one and all that.