70 yr old arrested for not watering her lawn

[GraceAbounds]

This is ridiculous. A fine I can see if she is violating an ordinance, but arresting her over not watering her lawn. That is baloney. We have city ordinances around here and if someone is elderly or living on a fixed income there is a number they can call and people will come out and help them to keep their property within city ordinances. Our sense of community is in the gutter. I can't stress enough how important it is to get to know your neighbors and to help one another. Grrrrrrrrrrrr. This story really gets under my skin.

 

[GuesSAngel]

you have to read the article better...

 

[Tim]

This is ridiculous. A fine I can see if she is violating an ordinance, but arresting her over not watering her lawn. That is baloney. We have city ordinances around here and if someone is elderly or living on a fixed income there is a number they can call and people will come out and help them to keep their property within city ordinances. Our sense of community is in the gutter. I can't stress enough how important it is to get to know your neighbors and to help one another. Grrrrrrrrrrrr. This story really gets under my skin.

Go read the article.... she was arrested for not cooperating with the officer (She wouldn't give her name to the cop)

 

[SRC]

Ya know .. still .. if the offense is not against "the law", and he was on her property without a warrant .. she really shouldn't have had to give him her name.

 

[Tim]

Ya know .. still .. if the offense is not against "the law", and he was on her property without a warrant .. she really shouldn't have had to give him her name.

You may have something here...

but if she was breaking a town ordinance but not upkeeping her lawn (which most towns have) then he has to be able to write her a ticket. I'm sure it was a case of one of her neighbors calling the cops on her.

 

[SRC]

So what if she couldn't afford a bigger water bill .. does a town ordinance force people into debt for cosmetics sake? I'd have to think not watering your lawn would not fall under this ordinance, like keeping garbage picked up out of it would.

And I still don't think he could have jailed her for it. Hell, I wouldn't have opened my door LOL.

 

[GraceAbounds]

Ya know .. still .. if the offense is not against "the law", and he was on her property without a warrant .. she really shouldn't have had to give him her name.

That is exactly what I was thinking. They usually give tickets for this sort of thing, they don't send cops out to arrest someone over a neighborhood ordinance.

I agree with SRC, I don't think I would have opened my door either.

 

[Tim]

I think my whole point is... she would have NEVER been arrested if she just cooperated with the officer and took the ticket. She always has the option of fighting the ticket in court. The officers only enforce the law, you don't fight them. You fight it in court.

 

[Tim]

That is exactly what I was thinking. They usually give tickets for this sort of thing, they don't send cops out to arrest someone over a neighborhood ordinance.

I agree with SRC, I don't think I would have opened my door either.

Exactly. They didn't arrest her for this sort of thing. They arrested her for not giving the officer her name when he went to write her a ticket. Read the article

 

[SRC]

I still stand that without a warrant while being on her own property and not having commited a "crime" .. she was within your rights to keep her mouth shut.

Not to mention .. if he went out to give her a ticket, on her property .. he already knew her name.

 

[GraceAbounds]

I did read the article. Stop telling me to read it just because I have a different opinion. Different opinion does not equate to article not being read.

To me it sounded like the old lady got scared. I agree that she did not react accordingly. But at the same token city ordinance tickets come in the mail and/or get tagged on your door. He didn't need to take a freaked out old lady to jail over some dead grass in the front yard. It was a judgment call for the officer to make, one in which I don't agree with and obviously his department probably didn't agree with either as he has been placed on leave for the day. Certified mail would have worked just fine.

 

[Tim]

I still stand that without a warrant while being on her own property and not having commited a "crime" .. she was within your rights to keep her mouth shut.

Not to mention .. if he went out to give her a ticket, on her property .. he already knew her name.

I'm not sure that would hold up.

If I was having a party and it got a little to loud (violating the noise ordinance) and the cops showed up to cite me. If I was a dick about it and didn't cooperate, I would end up going to jail. They have the right to go on your property to cite you for breaking the law.

 

[GuesSAngel]

I did read the article. Stop telling me to read it just because I have a different opinion. Different opinion does not equate to article not being read.

To me it sounded like the old lady got scared. I agree that she did not react accordingly. But at the same token city ordinance tickets come in the mail and/or get tagged on your door. He didn't need to take a freaked out old lady to jail over some dead grass in the front yard. It was a judgment call for the officer to make, one in which I don't agree with and obviously his department probably didn't agree with either as he has been placed on leave for the day. Certified mail would have worked just fine.

he took her to jail b/c she wouldn't give her name for the ticket. that's a little different...she wasn't listening to the law.

 

[GuesSAngel]

she didn't really seem to show any respect....it's like those kids i'm sure they were scared too...but they should have listened to the officers...even if it was something stupid like skateboarding.

 

[Tim]

I did read the article. Stop telling me to read it just because I have a different opinion. Different opinion does not equate to article not being read.

How is this not clear?

A widow and grandma spent the morning in jail, arrested for refusing to give a policeman her name when he tried writing her a ticket for failing to water her yard.

It does not say that she was arrested for not watering her lawn. There is no opinion here, just fact.

 

[Haus]

that is fucking stupid. dunkin donuts must of been closed or something.

i would think she has the RIGHT to not give the cop her name if she wanted to talk to her son or a lawyer first.

even the cops fellow workers think its a stupid reason to bring the lady in.

 

[GuesSAngel]

next time the cop pulls me over for speeding, i'll tell him i want to talk to my lawyer first lol

 

[SRC]

Speeding and not watering your lawn are two different things.

I still don't think it is a ticketable offense to not water your lawn. Your lawn is not public property. They would have to take you to court and get a judges order ordering you to water your lawn, then you would need to disobey that direct order from a judge to get a "ticket".

That seems like an inappropriate thing to be cited for. That is something a neighborhood usually sets in place, not a "City". And they don't cite you witht he police, they send you a bill.

We all have the right to the 5th amendment. I don't think refusing to give your name for a citation (not even a credible ticket) is legal recourse for jailing ... of which I'm pretty sure they would have already HAD her name for in the first place, if they had her address and were going to issue her a citation.

I also agree that if the officer has been put on leave .. he didn't have the authority to haul her in either. that right there says something in itself.

 

[elluko]

i wouldn't take it that far their not all bad.

Yeah, I know. I'm planning on becoming one!