A couple in Bristol is facing litigation for feeding wildlife on their property after their neighbors filed a complaint in Lincoln County Superior Court.
Sherrie Tucker and William Lawton Jr., of Bristol, were named in a complaint filed Aug. 11 by their neighbors, Vernard and Linda Grimes and Phillip Averill. The complaint alleges that by feeding wild animals such as squirrels, chipmunks, and a variety of birds, Tucker and Lawton increased the animal population of the area, resulting in damage to their property.
Tucker said the disagreement between the neighbors has been going on for a while. In the fall of 2014, Tucker and Lawton received a letter from the Grimeses and Averill’s attorney saying that by feeding animals on her property, Tucker and Lawton were attracting vermin such as mice and rats that could pose a risk to human health.
They say I brought rats to the area,” Tucker said. “I spoke to the town office and the fishermen and they both said there haven’t been rats in New Harbor for 50 years.”
Tucker said she believed the issue had been resolved until she was served with the complaint in August.
Tucker and Lawton reside year-round at 3 Salt Pond Point in New Harbor, where they have lived part time since 2007 and year-round since 2011.
In the complaint, the Grimeses said they have lived seasonally at 5 Salt Pond Point for approximately 10 years. Linda Grimes passed away in June, but is still listed as a plaintiff on the complaint.
Averill has a P.O. Box in Bristol listed as his address on the court document.
In the complaint, the plaintiffs said Tucker was the first person to start feeding wildlife on the property when she moved in full time in 2011. However, Tucker said she was not the first person on the property to feed the birds.
“We have a photo from 1981 of Bill’s father and mother feeding the birds,” Tucker said. “It’s been going on for longer than I’ve been here.”
According to the complaint, Tucker has set up motion-sensor cameras around the property to take pictures of the animals she feeds to sell on a website for her photography business.
“Those are security lights because I want to see who is on my lawn,” Tucker said. “I don’t take any pictures on my lawn to sell because who is going to buy a picture of a bird in the backyard?”
The plaintiffs said in the complaint that the wildlife Tucker feeds has caused damage and destruction to their properties, including nests and animal waste in the homes, burrowing in the yards, and chewed electrical wires, insulation, and mattresses.
“They’re not being proactive,” Tucker said. “During the winter, the mice do get into the pipes and the homes because they’re cold. That’s not my fault.”
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs are seeking unspecified damages and request that the court order the defendants to “abate the nuisance presently existing on their property and prevent reoccurrence in the future.”
“The bottom line is they want me to stop feeding the birds and animals,” Tucker said.
Alice Knapp, of Richmond, is representing Tucker and Lawton. Knapp filed an answer and affirmative defenses to the Grimeses and Averill’s complaint on Aug. 20.
Knapp said the next step is alternative dispute resolution. She is currently in discussion with the plaintiff’s attorney, Kent Murdick II, as to when this will take place. At that time, the Grimeses and Averill will have to show proof for each of the items listed in the complaint.
“The burden is on them to prove each of these allegations,” Knapp said.
Knapp said some of the items, including an allegation that the artificial food source Tucker provided “has increased the animal population and has strained the natural carrying capacity of the limited natural resources available in the area,” will have to be confirmed with expert testimony.
Calls to Murdick, the attorney representing the Grimeses and Averill, were not returned.
(Ed. note: Sherrie Tucker is a freelance photographer who contributes to The Lincoln County News.)