Martins Creek – A Superior Court judge upheld a nuisance abatement action against owners of a property that had an extensive history of disturbances, drug violations and overdoses, and numerous calls to the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office.
Superior Court Judge Tessa Sellers entered a default judgment and final order of abatement on Aug. 6 for a Chapter 19 Nuisance Abatement action against the property owners of 31 and 43 Stoney Hill Lane, which is off of Floyd Stalcup Road.
The residents have until 5 p.m. Thursday to vacate the land and remove their belongings from the property.
This order concludes a civil nuisance abatement case brought by Cherokee County on behalf of the State of North Carolina. Chapter 19 of the state statutes defines “nuisance” activities and provides for a civil remedy to abate such criminal acts and their detrimental impacts on the community.
“For many years, this property has been a detriment to the community, draining law enforcement resources and reducing the quality of life for the citizens in the Martins Creek community,” Sheriff Dustin Smith said in a release. “This remedy was successful because of an outstanding investigation between the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office and members of the ALE (N.C. Alcohol Law) Nuisance Abatement Team.”
Two of the five property owners worked with law enforcement and signed consent judgments to relinquish their portion of the property to the Cherokee County Board of Education. The remaining three property owners contested the action.
The terms of the default judgment and final order of abatement ordered the remaining property owners to relinquish their portion of the property to the Cherokee County Board of Education.
The default judgment forged an agreement detailing the future intended use of the property, which forbids future nuisance related activities on the property.
Smith expressed his gratitude for the effort and outcome.
“I appreciate the cooperation from the community members as we worked together to solve this problem,” he said. “I hope this successful resolution will ensure that the Martins Creek neighborhood returns to a more peaceful life,” he said.
The investigation was a joint effort between members of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, Cherokee Sheriff’s Office legal counsel and members of ALE Enforcement’s Nuisance Abatement Team.
“The nuisance abatement law provides a solution to problem locations that disproportionately demand law enforcement resources and reduce the quality of life for others,” said Scottie Shoaf, special agent in charge of the Nuisance Abatement Team. “It was a privilege to work with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office and their legal counsel to bring positive changes for residents living in this community.”
A similar action has been in progress in Andrews.
The owner of an Andrews property is working with state and local authorities to surrender ownership of property at 85 Temple St. that has plagued the community with more than 200 calls for service since 2016 and even more before that.
Cherokee County E-911 records only reach back to 2016. Andrews Mayor
James Reid said the property has been troublesome for the community for at least a decade.
“This is what will happen to you if you sell drugs in Andrews,” Reid said during Thursday’s board of aldermen meeting. “It’s been unreal what we’ve dealt with.”
This investigation resulted in the family transitioning the property to Cherokee County Schools to meet state and county ordinances and avoid all future lawsuits. As part of the resolution, the property will be closed within the next 60 days and all trespassers who go upon the property will be arrested and criminally charged.
Property owner James Matthew Mosteller signed a quitclaim deed on July 8, granting ownership of 85 Temple St. to the Cherokee County Board of Education, which would have gained ownership of the land if the court had ruled in favor of the lawsuit.
Town attorney Holly Christy was prepared to file a nuisance abatement complaint before July 12, but Mosteller wasn’t prepared to put up a fight, according to the town’s newsletter.
Service calls to the property include extra patrol and surveillance as well as sexual assaults, breaking and entering, shots fired, stabbing, animal complaints, drug overdoes, identity theft and larceny. The lion’s share of calls were for extra patrols from neighbors.
On July 8, Mosteller signed a limited real estate power of attorney granting the Andrews Police Department the authority to arrest anyone who is on the property other than the three current occupants of the home. Everyone must vacate the property by Sept. 10.