[Mintwood-place] slumlords

Mon Mar 8 09:28:02 EST 2004

Rest assured, we are going after the slumlords, as I have in the past.
Rest assured. Bests CM Jim Graham

I typically answer emails before 9 AM on weekdays. If you email me after
that, it is likely that you will hear from me the next weekday. If there
is a need to communicate prior to that, you may wish to call me.

Jim Graham, Councilmember, Ward One, 1350 Pa. Ave., NW, #406,
Washington, DC 20004. 202-724-8181; 202-724-8109 (fax).

-----Original Message-----
From: Martin Baldessari [mailto:mbaldessari at att.net] 
Sent: Saturday, March 06, 2004 1:15 PM
To: jim at grahamwone.com
Cc: 'Anne Theisen'; jim at grahamwone.com; ustreetnews at yahoogroups.com;
WardOneDC at yahoogroups.com; 13th-14th-irving-kenyon at columbiaheights.com;
NCHCA at yahoogroups.com; taskforce at columbiaheights.com;
floridaavenuewatch at yahoo.com; MonroeStreetAssoc at yahoogroups.com;
MountPleasantDC at yahoogroups.com; LeDroitPark at msn.com;
HolmeadVillage at yahoogroups.com; ch-discussion at columbiaheights.com;
columbia_heights at yahoogroups.com; r.f at mindspring.com;
adamsmorgan at yahoogroups.com; mintwood-place at lists.mutualaid.org;
ThePSA414OrangeHatPatrolGroup at yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [MonroeStreetAssoc] Re: [columbia_heights] INTRODUCTION OF
LEGISLATION TO PROSECUTE TRESPASSORS ON NUISANCE PROPERTY

Jim,

I want to second Anne Theisen's message.  Though I applauded your
proposal earlier, she makes a very good point that the owner of a
nuisance or unsecured property is at least as culpable as trespassers.
Long-term neglected or merely empty properties are not only a blight on
neighborhoods, they are dangers.  I hope you can do more in the way of
Anne's suggestion. Thanks.

Marty Baldessari
1522 Monroe Street NW

-----Original Message-----
From: Anne Theisen [mailto:anne at zorza.net] 
Sent: Wednesday, March 03, 2004 9:13 PM
To: jim at grahamwone.com; ustreetnews at yahoogroups.com;
WardOneDC at yahoogroups.com; 13th-14th-irving-kenyon at columbiaheights.com;
NCHCA at yahoogroups.com; taskforce at columbiaheights.com;
floridaavenuewatch at yahoo.com; MonroeStreetAssoc at yahoogroups.com;
MountPleasantDC at yahoogroups.com; LeDroitPark at msn.com;
HolmeadVillage at yahoogroups.com; ch-discussion at columbiaheights.com;
columbia_heights at yahoogroups.com; r.f at mindspring.com;
adamsmorgan at yahoogroups.com; mintwood-place at lists.mutualaid.org;
ThePSA414OrangeHatPatrolGroup at yahoogroups.com
Subject: [MonroeStreetAssoc] Re: [columbia_heights] INTRODUCTION OF
LEGISLATION TO PROSECUTE TRESPASSORS ON NUISANCE PROPERTY

Dear Jim,

I am glad that you are taking action on this issue; however, I would
recommend that stiffer penalties also be applied to the owners of these
abandoned nuisance properties.  If the properties were properly cared
for and secured problems of trespassing could also be solved.  While I
don't advocate trespassing, I do feel for people who are homeless and
understand their attempts to shelter themselves.  The real criminals
here are the owners who do not care for their property.

Can such a clause be added to your bill?

Anne Theisen

----- Original Message -----
From: <jim at grahamwone.com>
To: <ustreetnews at yahoogroups.com>; <WardOneDC at yahoogroups.com>;
<13th-14th-irving-kenyon at columbiaheights.com>; <NCHCA at yahoogroups.com>;
<taskforce at columbiaheights.com>; <floridaavenuewatch at yahoo.com>;
<MonroeStreetAssoc at yahoogroups.com>; <MountPleasantDC at yahoogroups.com>;
<LeDroitPark at msn.com>; <HolmeadVillage at yahoogroups.com>;
<ch-discussion at columbiaheights.com>; <columbia_heights at yahoogroups.com>;
<r.f at mindspring.com>; <adamsmorgan at yahoogroups.com>;
<mintwood-place at lists.mutualaid.org>;
<ThePSA414OrangeHatPatrolGroup at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, March 02, 2004 6:06 PM
Subject: [columbia_heights] INTRODUCTION OF LEGISLATION TO PROSECUTE
TRESPASSORS ON NUISANCE PROPERTY

> MY INTRODUCTION OF LEGISLATION TO PROSECUTE TRESPASSORS ON NUISANCE
PROPERTY
>
>
>
> Dear Friends,
> Today I introduced legislation to strengthen D.C. law on nuisance
properties, by making it easier to prosecute trespassers in abandoned
buildings.
> On Sunday, February 22, a fire started in a vacant house on the 1400 
> block
of Perry Place, NW, tore through several adjacent homes, destroying the
homes of several long-time residents on the block. Trespassers who were
cooking on the premises apparently caused the fire. Much to my surprise
and dismay, although neighbors detained a trespasser who was fleeing the
scene, police later released the suspect. Existing law requires that the
police confirm that the suspect was there without lawful authority and
against the will of the owner. This is sometimes impossible where the
owner of the nuisance property is unwilling to cooperate or cannot be
contacted, as was the case at Perry Place.
> I introduced this legislation to ensure that trespassers be held
accountable for their actions by having a rebuttable presumption that
any person without lawful authority who enters a vacant property is
there against the will of the owner. The trespasser would have to prove
that he or she is there lawfully.
> In a city with hundreds, if not thousands, of identified abandoned
nuisance properties, the current law leaves the door wide open for
people to enter vacant buildings unlawfully and cause damage to property
and lives without consequence. Many owners of nuisance properties do
nothing to fix the problem, so it doesn't make sense to have a law
require their support in order to prosecute trespassers on these
nuisance properties.
>
> Bests,
>
> Councilmember Jim Graham, Ward One
> 1350 Pennsylvania Ave., NW; Suite 406
> Washington, DC 20004
> (202) 724.8181
> (202) 724-8109 Fax
>
>
>
>
> URL to this page on the web:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/columbia_heights/
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>

Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
     http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MonroeStreetAssoc/

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
     MonroeStreetAssoc-unsubscribe at yahoogroups.com

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
     http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/