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Occupancy case turns on evidence and notice; magistrate allows interior access to avoid further action
Summary
In a contested occupancy case, the magistrate admitted public-record evidence and photographs showing exterior indicators of occupancy and rejected a defense motion to dismiss for procedural deficiencies, then ordered 30 days to comply with standard fines and offered the option of interior inspection to resolve the issue.
The magistrate found that photographs and public records provided by county staff established sufficient evidence that a residential structure was being used without a certificate of occupancy and issued a 30-day compliance order.
Hope Nelson, code compliance officer, testified she observed children's bikes, packages, decorations, personal vehicles charging and a mailbox assigned to the property; she offered public-record searches and property-appraiser documents into evidence. Respondents objected to several documents they said were provided late, argued the county's mailed notices had been returned and that posting provided less than two weeks' notice, and contended there was no interior inspection or direct evidence of occupancy. Counsel pressed that certain records were compiled after public-record requests and questioned the provenance of some documents.
The magistrate admitted non-prejudicial public records as exhibits, declined to dismiss the case, and found the county had proven the violation. The magistrate gave the respondents 30 days to bring the property into compliance, warned of $50-per-day fines and a two-year cease-and-desist for repeat violations, and noted that if respondents allowed an interior inspection that showed no occupancy while the order is in place, the county would refrain from further action.
