A Florida mother named Irena Inexperienced discovered herself in handcuffs over her brown grass and a grimy mailbox exterior her house, due to her strict HOA (Owners Affiliation). What began as a easy violation discover spiraled into extra notices earlier than a lawsuit was filed. Irena ended up lacking her courtroom date, prompting her to face THIS many days behind bars. Right here’s the lowdown…
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Extra On Irena Inexperienced’s Ordeal With Her HOA
Irena’s nightmare started with a discover from The Trowbridge Firm Inc., her HOA’s administration, stating her garden’s browning grass. “The grass has began turning brown. So then they began sending notes,” Inexperienced instructed ABC Motion Information. She blamed a giant tree casting shade and drought-related watering restrictions in her space. “In case you drive round my neighborhood, you’ll see there’s loads of yards lower than par,” she added. However the HOA was not prepared to budge.
They hit her with extra violations: a grimy mailbox, a dented storage door, and a industrial cargo van parked in her driveway. Irena says related vans had been widespread in her neighborhood, and she or he felt singled out. When she ignored a mediation request, the HOA employed legal professional Francis Friscia to file a lawsuit in Hillsborough County Civil Courtroom.
Irena submitted a response with out an legal professional. She says she represented herself, however the choose rejected her letter. Then, in July 2024, the courtroom gave her a 30-day ultimatum. Repair the violations or face jail time. “He mentioned you will get seed, you are able to do one thing, however you’ve acquired 30 days to get it corrected,” Irena recalled. She says she started working, promoting her van, scrubbing the mailbox, and seeding her garden. However issues had been removed from over.
A Missed Courtroom Date Landed Her Behind Bars
Irena thought she’d finished sufficient to conform, however the HOA nonetheless wasn’t glad. The actual bother got here when she missed a follow-up courtroom listening to in August 2024.
“I used to be imagined to obtain documentation. Nothing was despatched to my house. And I reached out to the courthouse a number of occasions to attempt to discover out when was my courtroom date,” she defined.
The choose, unimpressed, discovered her in contempt of courtroom and issued a warrant for her arrest, allegedly at Friscia’s request. On Could 23, whereas driving her 15-year-old daughter house from cheerleading apply, Irena was pulled over by a deputy. “He requested me can I get out. Once I acquired out he mentioned, ‘Ms. Inexperienced, do you know that you’ve got a warrant on your arrest?’” she recounted.
She was handcuffed and booked into jail with out bond. “There was no bond. So I couldn’t even go house to my household. I sat in there for seven days. Seven days within the jailhouse like a felony,” Irena mentioned, describing the humiliation. She confronted two fees. They had been in contempt of courtroom and in failure to adjust to a courtroom order to point out trigger.
Irene’s Been Launched However Nonetheless Preventing
After six days in jail, Irena’s sister-in-law filed an emergency petition. On the listening to, her sibling introduced images proving the yard was mounted. A distinct choose ordered her instant launch, regardless of the HOA legal professional’s push to maintain her locked up.
“It makes me really feel horrible. I work laborious to purchase this house for me and my children in a greater neighborhood and surroundings, and to be taken to jail and to be handled like that for brown grass at my own residence … that’s horrible,” Irena continued.
Now, she’s mentioned to be going through 1000’s in authorized charges and a foreclosures menace from the HOA over unpaid dues. “I believe they’ve approach an excessive amount of energy. I’ve by no means heard of something like this in my life,” she mentioned.
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