The rights of private property owners carry significantly more weight than the presumed rights of a county government to condemn property for use by private business, according to a recent ruling by the court of civil appeals of the state of Oklahoma. The September 9 ruling was in the case of Muskogee County versus Ed and Mary Lowery. The Lowery’s own a farm south of Muskogee.
"We are ecstatic our property has been protected," said Ed Lowery. "It’s not right the county can take your property and just give it to a large company."
The land battle started when Muskogee county condemned Lowery’s property for use by Energetix, a private electric generation plant. Energetix wants to build and operate a water pipeline across Lowerys’ property connecting the plant to the Arkansas River. A Muskogee County District judge earlier ruled in favor of the county. However, in the legal opinion of Judge Jerry Goodman, Civil Court of Appeals in Tulsa, this was a mistake.
"Where private property is taken for the direct benefit of a private company, the requirement of public purpose is not met simply because the company’s presence would enhance the community’s economy," Judge Goodman wrote in his published opinion.
"This has been a 2-year struggle to establish the government does not have the right to decide who can own property," said Harlan Hentges, Lowery’s attorney and legal counsel for the Oklahoma Agricultural Legal Foundation. The foundation adopted Lowery’s case because individuals do not have the financial resources to tackle the combined powers of big business and government, Hentges said.
"We would not have been able to take this to the courts without the financial support of the Foundation," Lowery said.
"This firmly decides that economic development alone does not override the rights of private landowners," Hentges said. "Our economy is built on the premise to own private property."
"The economic success of our communities is based on the success of private landowners building wealth," Hentges said. "The county has lost sight of that fact."
The Oklahoma Agricultural Legal Foundation was established by Oklahoma Farm Bureau and is supported by other rural-based organizations focused on protecting private property rights. Other notable cases carried by the foundation include federal encroachment upon private property while enforcing the Endangered Species Act.
