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A judge this week ordered a northern California couple to pay close to $ 600,000 for the uprooting of an almost 200-year-old oak from their property protected by a conservation easement.
Peter and Toni Thompson removed the 180-year-old oak, and transferred it to another house they built near the property. More than 3,000 cubic meters of soil were also removed.
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The tree, two others that they removed and a dozen others along a previously undisturbed trail that they bulldozed, as well as the surrounding vegetation.
This picture shows a 180-year-old oak belonging to a heritage inherited from a bondage site located in Sonoma, California.
(Crystal Simons / Sonoma Land Trust via AP)
The Sonoma County Superior Court has sided with the Sonoma Land Trust, claiming that the Thompsons had knowingly violated the conservation agreement and that they had demonstrated "arrogance" and a "contempt" for the conditions of servitude. The $ 586,000 fine will be used to restore the property's environment.
The couple, who decided to sell his estate $ 8.45 million after the ruling, is seeking a new trial, finding that his lawyer could not represent them properly for personal reasons.
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"In our opinion, there is ample evidence that our version of history has not had a chance to explain it," said Peter Thompson.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
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