Is a constitutional lawn-care crisis blooming? The defiant Longwood resident has filed an appeal with the Florida Supreme Court over the fines for his lawn full of deadwood, weeds and trash. He says he grows organic food, that un-mowed areas provide greater plant diversity — and that the First Amendment gives him the right to follow his own horticultural taste.
A man’s home is his castle?
Not for Florida man Sean Law, who’s racked up more than $130,000 in fines for failing to clear up his messy backyard.
The 32-year-old, from Longwood, has been slapped with the hefty penalties for refusing to get rid of mounting weeds, trash and deadwood.
orlandosentinel.com
Sean Law of Orlando, Florida, holds a squash and some daikon radishes grown on his front pawn in Orlando, Florida. He likes to garden and grow things on his front lawn and refuses to mow it.
Neighbors complained in July 2012 that the ever-increasing piles of garbage were bringing down their property prices.
Longwood cited Law, who claimed he was using the land to grow organic food.
orlandosentinel.com
Dead trees, hay and logs strew may make for a mess, but Sean Law says he has the right to his own aesthetics under the First Amendment.
But he’s now trying to get city commissioners to drop their financial demands after clearing up some of the debris and putting in paths.
“It’s so it would look more like a garden, so that it would be more pleasant for people to walk around in,” he told the Orlando Sentinel, adding that, “un-mowed areas contain a greater diversity of plant and wildlife,” and that restricting his right to have the lawn he wants would violate the First Amendment.
Fox 35 News/myfoxorlando.com
Sean Law of Orlando, Florida, defends his messy lawn and has now put in some paths to make it more appealing, he hopes, saying, “It’s so it would look more like a garden, so that it would be more pleasant for people to walk around in.”
Law made his appeal for a truce during a city meeting on Monday. Commissioners said it was up to the city’s Special Magistrate Amy Goodblatt to decide.
He has now filed an appeal with the Florida Supreme Court and is awaiting a decision.
