Woman in Trouble Again for Untidy Yard

UPDATE (1 p.m. Tuesday): A town code enforcement officer met with property owner Linda Ruggles on Tuesday morning, according to the Post and Courier. The 15-minute gathering on the woman's front lawn was tense, and ended with the inspector leaving without much accomplished.

Ruggles says she intends to fight the most recent charges that her yard is in violation of the town's "clean lot" ordinance, the newspaper reports. The town says it wants to work with Ruggles and other property owners. It has plans to establish a task force to address clean-lot violations.

The original story is as follows:

The Mount Pleasant woman whose yard was so messy she was ordered to jail for a six days earlier this year is again in trouble for having an unkempt lawn.

Mount Pleasant asked Linda Ruggles to make the improvements in March, but there has been no change, officials say. She faces a June 4 deadline to make improvements or face a ticket.

"According to statements from neighbors, it may have gotten worse," said Town Administrator Eric DeMoura. "We sent her a letter on March 20 following more neighbor complaints."

Ruggles's Longview Road home is decorated with tables a chairs that are adorned with various knick-knacks and statuary. Attempts by Patch to reach Ruggles were not successful, but she told the Post and Courier the situation is a matter of opinion.

“There is nothing wrong with my yard,” she said. “If they don’t like my table and chairs, they need to get over it. If they don’t like the way I decorate my yard, they need to get over it. This is America, and I can decorate my yard any way I want.”

Ruggles home is on a cul-de-sac with yards that are not decorated in the same manner as hers.

Back in January, Ruggles's roof was stacked with boxes of shingles that had never been used and her yard was overgrown. A roofer and a landscaper volunteered to bring her Longview Road home to code after she was released from jail.

Ruggles went to jail because she refused to pay a $480 municipal fine, DeMoura said. She is not yet facing the threat of a jail sentence. That takes months and an appearance before a judge, DeMoura said.

UNCOMMON SITUATION
The situation with Ruggles is highly unusual, a review of town data shows. Of the 60 or so properties cited for violating the town's "clean lot" ordinance this year, only 13 were issued tickets. Most violations are remedied with a letter from the town.

Among those 13 property owners who had tickets, all but two — Ruggles and another property owner — had their charges dismissed in court because the properties were cleaned. The town allows up to eight months for property owners to get into compliance before ordering them to court, records indicate.

"The matter with Ms. Ruggles started with the clean lot violation but ultimately came as a result of not paying the fine," DeMoura said. "Tickets are our last resort and usually between our initial letter to the property owner and the time we give for the matter to be corrected, the property is cleaned up."

DeMoura said most of the "clean lot" complaints come from neighbors, and that's the situation with Ruggles. He's hopeful the situation can be remedied without fines or jail.

"We understand that a church has volunteered to assist her," he said. "Hopefully that will occur and we will not have to take this matter further."