Dargan Coggeshall, one of the defendants in the North South Development, LLC v. Garden, et. al. lawsuit on the Jackson River use, has e-mailed us the following update on Monday’s hearing.
“The judge denied the Craving Oyer motion, but he said he was doing so, not because of either counsel’s arguments, but because all the relevant docs are public. He said everyone would have them during discovery. The judge didn’t feel the hearing was the place to produce all of those docs. “
“ The judge also denied the attachment of the state at this stage, but said he was not ruling out calling them in during the trial phase. “
“After the hearing, our lawyers met w/ opposing counsel and both parties agreed this should be resolved expeditiously. Our lawyers seemed up-beat and the judge seems to be very practical about this – either they have it or they don’t.”
This is just the first step in a long process and the Virginia Rivers Defense Fund could use your help. Please go to DONATE page and give what you can. The Virginia Rivers Defense Fund is a 501(c)(3) organization and your donation is tax-deductible. These guys are the ones on the hot seat right now, but it could be any of us in the very near future. We need this to be nipped in the bud and that takes money. Money for lawyers, money for filing, money for research, it all must come from somewhere. The developer is well-heeled and the homeowner who is also in the suit told the Roanoke Times that they paid $600,000 for a second home, so we’re up against a well-funded adversary.
Here is a quote from today’s front page article:
“Roanoke neurosurgeon John Feldenzer and wife Karen were among the first buyers in The River’s Edge on the Jackson River development, paying $600,000 for their property in 2008. The Feldenzers and The River’s Edge developer are suing two anglers, claiming that they, and not the state, own the streambed, and so can control fishing and wading access.”
The battle lines are drawn and it’s time to step up and take a position.