ABOUT OUR LEGAL DEFENSE

COUNTDOWN TO 03.03.2007
NOW IS THE TIME TO SEND IN YOUR CHR MEMBERSHIP FORM AND CHECK

As many of you are aware, State Representative Donna Rowland sent out a letter back in early August informing us that we, as citizens of Rutherford County, have legal options to deter the forced annexation that we will be facing in the near future, contingent on the votes of the Murfreesboro City Council. Although she cannot endorse any particular organization, she did send out a open letter from John Emison, president of a not-for-profit entity that has already filed a lawsuit on behalf of plaintiffs who reside in the Brinkley Road area.  This organization is Citizens for Home Rule, Inc., and many of you have already sent in your $50.00 annual membership fees for legal representation if our area is voted to be annexed.


It would be advantageous for citizens, who are property owners in areas threatened with annexation (areas 1, 2, and 3 in the Blackman area), to complete the membership application and mail it along with the $50.00 annual membership fee to CITIZENS FOR HOME RULE, INC.  By taking this action before a lawsuit is filed against the City of Murfreesboro, the citizens may secure their positions more strongly as documented co-plaintiffs in any subsequent lawsuit.


Below you will find some important information regarding CHR, as well as their mission statement and a brief description of a term that keeps popping up during all of this annexation procedure, "eminent domain." Please go to the CHR website for a more thorough evaluation of their organization as well as how to contact them directly. Also, if you need the application form or access to your parcel number, these links are embedded in this sentence. Lastly, after you investigate CHR on your own, please look at the FAQ's at the bottom of this page.

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Citizens for Home Rule, Inc.
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Citizens for Home Rule, Inc. (CHR) is a not-for-profit advocacy organization chartered under Tennessee corporation law in 1980.

CHR is dedicated to the preservation of the legal rights of its members in the matter of unwanted annexation, and provides the legal and financial resources to file suit and block such annexations.

We believe CHR is the most litigious advocacy organization in the State of Tennessee, and we are the City of Knoxville's most frequent and most successful litigant.

". . .the right of trial by jury shall remain inviolate. . ."
Tennessee Constitution, Article I, paragraph 6


"It shall be the policy of Citizens for Home Rule, Inc. (CHR) to actively advocate for defense of individual private property rights against abusive exercise of any governmental power of eminent domain." - Policy statement unanimously adopted by Citizens for Home Rule, Inc. Board of Directors on September 20, 2005


Eminent domain

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eminent domain is the lawful power of the state to expropriate private property without the owner's consent, either for its own use or on behalf of a third party. The term eminent domain is used primarily in the United States, where the term was derived in the mid-19th century from a legal treatise written by the Dutch jurist Hugo Grotius in 1625. Originally, the power of eminent domain was assumed to arise from natural law as an inherent power of the sovereign.

Governments most commonly use the power of eminent domain when the acquisition of real property is necessary for the completion of a public project such as a road, and the owner of the required property is unwilling to negotiate a price for its sale. In many jurisdictions the power of eminent domain is tempered with a right that just compensation be made for the appropriation.

FAQ'S


Now that you have been formally introduced to Citizens for Home Rule, INC., you may want to know who they are and what they can do for us.  Confusion about this group is understandable considering all that has transpired since our first neighborhood meeting back in June.  Hopefully some of these questions will be clarified by the explanations that follow:

Who is CHR?

Citizens for Home Rule, Inc. (CHR) is a 25-year old not-for-profit organization dedicated to opposing coerced (forced) annexation of its members.  Based out of East Tennessee, CHR has never lost an annexation trial to the City of Knoxville on behalf of its members.  They have won scores of battles in court.  CHR currently sponsors approximately 200 lawsuits.  It has recently filled lawsuits on the behalf of associate members in Sumner and Dickson Counties.

What can they do for you?

When an annexed property owner joins CHR and pays his or her annual dues, CHR will assume all legal costs, including that of an attorney, and authorize their corporation counsel to file a lawsuit on your behalf, naming you as a plaintiff .  The attorney represents you and you alone.  You are the client.  CHR will not tell the attorney how to handle your lawsuit and the attorney does not divulge any information to CHR that you do not authorize.

What does this mean?

Once CHR files the lawsuit on your behalf, the suit has the effect of blocking the annexation, unless and until a court rules at trial that the annexation is valid.  Murfreesboro cannot levy taxes on you while the trial is pending.

How do you become a member?

You need to fill out a membership application, which can be printed from this website.

How much does it cost?

An annual membership costs $50.00.  CHR will not deposit anyone's check until 30 applications are received.


What happens if I do not join CHR?

Since you will not be a named plaintiff in any lawsuit filed by CHR, you will be personally defeneless against the City of Murfreesboro, although you may be collectively protected if the City chooses to annex numerous properties as a group.


How much time do I have?

To be listed as a PLAINTIFF, I MUST have your info by 12:00 noon, Tuesday, February 27, 2007!!!!

NOW IS THE TIME!



Website suggestions? Please contact me: donotannexus@comcast.net