Torres v. Putnam County

The county failed to state a cause of action in tort arising out of the defendants' use of their property in violation of the county's zoning ordinance.

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Putnam County filed suit against Dwight York, Victor Greig, Thomas Chism and other unnamed defendants, seeking compensatory and punitive damages as well as injunctive relief arising out of the defendants’ use of certain real property located in unincorporated Putnam County and allegedly owned by York.1 The trial court entered an interlocutory injunction which, inter alia, authorized the building inspector to inspect the property. The trial court held Thomas Chism, Henry Torres and Claude Turner in contempt of that order for preventing the inspection. In Case No. A00A0977, Torres and Turner appeal the contempt order as provided by OCGA § 5-6-34 a 2.2

The County then filed a supplemented and amended complaint, adding Torres and Turner as named defendants along with other individuals and an entity called Tama-Re Enterprise. The county alleges that, for zoning purposes, the parcel was divided into two smaller parcels, one zoned for low density residential use and the other zoned for agricultural use. The county alleges the defendants, individually and in various combinations, constructed several buildings on the property and in those buildings operated a variety of commercial enterprises, ranging from entertainment and food service to limousine and taxicab service to stores selling clothes, jewelry, books and crafts. The county alleges that the buildings, as constructed and operated, and a dump on the property violated the applicable zoning ordinance and building and safety code. The county sought an injunction prohibiting the non-conforming use of the property, including any future construction. The county also sought “compensatory and punitive damages” against all defendants, jointly and severally.

Torres v. Putnam County

The county failed to state a cause of action in tort arising out of the defendants' use of their property in violation of the county's zoning ordinance.

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