A man had to stay in jail to protect a building on his property from being torn down. County Uses Fraud to Imprison Property Owner In Zoning Dispute - YouTube Boone County, Missouri used a fraudulent survey to claim a right of way for future development on Seth Reynolds' private property. County Surveyor Matthew Thomas used this "survey" findings for his testimony to commit a fraud upon the court. To obtain this ruling in favor of Boone County. The court then ordered Seth Reynolds to tear or burn down his building for being in Boone County's "right of way". Engineer Alan Barnett discovered the fraud and told Boone County's Commissioners in an effort to get them to end the demand for the building to be destroyed. Commissioners Dan Atwill, Janet Thompson and Fred Parry didn't care. Boone County Counselor CJ Dykhouse, using the judge's order, was able to have Seth Reynolds imprisoned in an effort to coerce Reynolds into surrendering his legal rights to hold Boone County accountable for its fraud on the court. Reynolds became indefinitely detained in the Boone County Jail, as a result of this fraud upon the court by Boone County for a civil zoning ordinance dispute. In 2013 Seth Reynolds, using Amish labor, had a 40 x 60 foot storage building on his tract of land in rural Boone County, Missouri. The building cost Seth over $30,000.00 to build. The eastern third of the building's floor was secured by piers built into a steep cliff that ran into the Rocky Fork Creek. Seth paid $600 for a building permit authorizing this construction with a warning that he may need to make application for a zoning variance. Seth was given assurances that this variance was a sure bet to be granted by county. He was advised by the permit officer to apply for a variance, but did not do so until 2015. Four days later, the county sent a letter stating the structure was too close to the road by about four-and-one-half feet. Boone County officials advised him that his recent construction was in the County right of way for future development. Boone County ordered corrective action be taken by Seth, despite no plans to use the right of way on his property for any future public works project. Seth's construction was in conformity with neighboring landowners who had constructed structures several feet closer to roadway and more in what Boone County would later claim was its "right of way" for future development along Creasy Springs Road. In 2015, Boone County filed an injunction request in the Circuit Court of Boone County seeking a court order that Mr. Reynolds destroy his building and fence that they claim encroached on the County's right of way. The County claimed that it had not sold Seth Reynolds a building permit in its petition to the Court. Boone County was represented by Assistant County Counselor Ron Sweet and the judge in the case was Jodie Asel. The crucial evidence of the case about Boone County's alleged right of way into Seth Reynolds’ property was provided by Boone County Surveyor Matthew Thomas and his survey was used by him to assist his testimony at trial. Judge Asel found that Boone County had proven that Seth Reynolds’ construction violated County Zoning ordinances and ordered that his building be destroyed. And further ordered, that if his shed was not destroyed by her deadline that Seth Reynolds would be found in contempt of her order. Thereafter he would be civilly committed to incarceration at the Boone County Jail. Initially this confinement was for ten days and then indefinitely overnights from 8:00 PM. until 6:30 AM. until such time as Seth brought his property into compliance with her order. Seth Reynolds expressed that it would be prohibitively expensive for him to destroy this construction on his property due to its location on a cliff. Alan Barnett, a licensed public engineer in the state, an acquaintance of Seth's, asked to review the survey and other documents used by Boone County to obtain this judgment. Engineer Barnett noted significant discrepancies in the survey that raised questions as to the legitimacy of Thomas's testimony and the exhibit submitted to the court by Boone County Surveyor Matthew Thomas. Barnett attempted to recreate the survey allegedly conducted on Seth Reynolds property but could find none of the required by law landmarks necessary for a legal survey. Barnett requested a copy of Surveyor Thomas's required survey notes and Boone County refused to provide any and claimed that no such notes were made by Thomas. Barnett determined that Seth Reynolds' construction did not in fact encroach into Boone County's right of way and informed Boone County. Boone County Counselor C.J. Dykhouse was notified about the fraudulent survey submitted to the court to obtain the Boone County’s judgment against Seth Reynolds. Counselor Dykhouse thereafter refered to Thomas's survey as a "drawing" and claimed that Reynolds' trial counsel Tom Schneider's failure to object to the admission of the survey relieved Boone County of any responsibility to submit non-fraudulent documents to the court in Seth's case. Boone County used fraud to win zoning dispute - Wyse Law Firm, P.C. Reynolds decided not to tear down his building, which resulted in the county counselor going to the judge to seek a civil contempt order against Reynolds. This meant that Reynolds would be subject to coercive punishment until he either agreed to pay to have the building demolished, or until he was able to finally win his case, something that would be likely to take longer than a year. Since May 15, 2019, Reynolds spent from 8 pm. to 6:30 am. daily in the Boone County Jail in defiance of Judge Asel's order from May 2017. This order would later be upheld by the Missouri Court of Appeals Western District. Multiple presentations were made to the Boone County Commission, and all three Commissioners Dan Atwill, Janet Thompson and Fred Parry, about the fraud perpetrated by Boone County against Seth Reynolds. Rather than correct the decision, the commissioners doubled down. They demanded that Seth sign away any legal right to hold them accountable before he could be released under a settlement agreement from his continuing incarceration and pay them a monthly licensing fee for his alleged encroachment into Boone County’s right of way until the building was destroyed. The county offered to settle in February 2020 if he would pay a $100 a month licensing fee until the building was destroyed. The commission demanded that Seth sign away any legal right to hold them accountable before he could be released under this settlement agreement, which would end his incarceration. Reynolds declined. Reynolds described the mattress pads he had to sleep on in the jail as "garbage". "Well some of them are in good shape, but some are really worn out," Reynolds said. "A lot of them are severely ripped and torn up and cracked due to use and age and I think a lot of them need to be replaced. Those mattresses, some of them are so old and so gross." Reynolds often did not have a choice about which mattress pad he got due to the jail being filled at capacity most nights. Reynolds was then ordered to be jailed around the clock from March 27 until May 4, 2020. At that time Judge Asel denied requests for hearing where evidence and testimony could have been presented. In response to the coronavirus pandemic, Reynolds was then ordered to be under home incarceration, which had a set end date of August 21.
