Opinion
No. EDCV 15-01671 GW (KKx)
10-03-2016
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff, v. 320.00 ACRES OF LAND, MORE OR LESS, SITUATE IN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY, STATE OF CALIFORNIA; HEIRS OF DORIS WELLES CURTIS; ALDEN CURTIS JACOBUS; BRUCE ALDRON JACOBUS; JEANNIE D. WELLES BETTCHER, TRUSTEE OF THE REVOCABLE TRUST AGREEMENT OF THOMAS E. WELLES; ALDEN CURTIS JACOBUS; BRUCE WALDRON JACOBUS; JEANIE D. WELLES BETTCHER, TRUSTEE OF THE REVOCABLE TRUST AGREEMENT OF THOMAS E. WELLES; JEANIE D. BETTCHER aka JEANIE D. WELLES BETTCHER; BERTHOD BETTCHER; HAROLD L. MAJOR aka HAL MAJOR; KATE DICKERSON MAJOR; HEIRS OF CAROLYN LURTON BELL; HEIRS OF HARRIET LURTON MAJOR; PATRICIA C. GOODGAME aka PATRICIA GOODGAME BABB; OREN WYATT BABB; MARGARET C. GIESENSCHLAG; CLYDE ALLEN GIESENSCHLAG; SHIRLEY WELLES RITCHIE aka SHIRLEY RITCHIE; JENNIFER SEXTON O'NEILL LANE aka JENNIFER LANE MORGAN; MICHAEL FRANCES MORGAN; JANICE A. CORY; MICHAEL JOSEPH CORY; JENNIFER WELLS LANE; SUSANNAH LANE aka SUSANNAH LANE-SULLIVAN; ERIC STEVEN SULLIVAN; and SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY TAX COLLECTOR, et al., Defendants.
EILEEN M. DECKER United States Attorney DOROTHY M. SCHOUTEN Assistant United States Attorney Chief, Civil Division ROBYN-MARIE LYON MONTELEONE Assistant United States Attorney Chief, General Civil Section JONATHAN B. KLINCK (CBN 119926) Assistant United States Attorney Federal Building, Suite 7516 300 North Los Angeles Street Los Angeles, California 90012 Telephone: (213) 894-8561 Facsimile: (213) 894-7819 E-mail: jon.klinck@usdoj.gov Attorneys for Plaintiff United States of America
EILEEN M. DECKER
United States Attorney
DOROTHY M. SCHOUTEN
Assistant United States Attorney
Chief, Civil Division
ROBYN-MARIE LYON MONTELEONE
Assistant United States Attorney
Chief, General Civil Section
JONATHAN B. KLINCK (CBN 119926)
Assistant United States Attorney
Federal Building, Suite 7516
300 North Los Angeles Street
Los Angeles, California 90012
Telephone: (213) 894-8561
Facsimile: (213) 894-7819
E-mail: jon.klinck@usdoj.gov Attorneys for Plaintiff United States of America FINAL JUDGMENT The Honorable George H. Wu
Based on the filed Stipulation of Settlement, Stipulation of Just Compensation and Request For Entry of Final Judgment ("Stipulation") entered into between Plaintiff United States and defendants Randall Bell III, Harold Major as the Trustee of the Harriet Ann Major Irrevocable Trust, Elizabeth Ann Welles, Bruce Jacobus, Jeanie Darlene Bettcher as Trustee of the TE Welles Trust, Jeannie Darlene Bettcher as an individual, Janice Arline Cory, Patricia Babb, Alden Jacobus, Margaret Giesenschlag, Jennifer Morgan, Jennifer Welles Lane, Susannah Sullivan and Shirley Ritchie ("collectively "Owners"), and good cause appearing therefor,
IT IS ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED that:
1. Plaintiff shall and hereby does have the fee interest in approximately 320.00 acres of real property in San Bernardino County, California, which is legally described as: The North one-half of Section 36, Township 11 North, Range 3 East, San Bernardino Meridian, in the County of San Bernardino, State of California, according to the Official Plat thereof ("Subject Property"), as stated in the Declaration of Taking filed herein (Dkt. #11). The Subject Property is also known as San Bernardino County Assessor's Parcel Number 0540-161-04-0000, containing 320.00 acres, more or less. The United States will take title to the Subject Property in fee simple, which title, however, is subject to existing easements for public roads and highways, public utilities, railroads, pipelines, and to the right of the people to fish upon the Subject Property as reserved in the Patent from the State of California.
2. The total just compensation payable by the United States to the Owners for the taking of the Subject Property, together with all improvements thereon and appurtenances thereunto belonging, in fee simple, shall be the sum of Two Hundred and Seven Thousand Dollars and No Cents ($207,000.00), inclusive of interest, attorneys' fees, costs and any outstanding taxes ("Deposit").
3. The proportionate interests of the Owners and the amounts payable to each of them from the Deposit are as follows:
| Owner's Name | Percentage Interest | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| A. Randall Bell III | 25.00% | $51,750.00 |
| B. Harold Major as Trusteeof the Harriet Ann MajorIrrevocable Trust | 25.00 % | $51,750.00 |
| C. Elizabeth Ann Welles | 12.50% | $25,875.00 |
| D. Bruce Jacobus | 12.50% | $25,875.00 |
| E. Jeanie Darlene BettcherTrustee of the TE Welles Trust | 12.50% | $25,875.00 |
| F. Jeannie Darlene Bettcher | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| G. Janice Arline Cory | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| H. Patricia Babb | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| I. Alden Jacobus | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| J. Margaret Giesenschlag | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| K. Jennifer Morgan | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| L. Jennifer Welles Lane | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| M. Susannah Sullivan | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| N. Shirley Ritchie | 1.38889% | $2,875.00 |
| TOTAL | 100% | $207,000,000 |
4. The United States filed a Complaint in Condemnation on August 18, 2015 (Dkt. #1), filed the Declaration of Taking on August 31 2015 (Dkt. #11), and deposited the Deposit with the Clerk of Court on August 19, 2015 (Dkt. #6). Upon making the Deposit into the Registry of the Court, fee title to the Subject Property, as set forth in the Declaration of Taking, vested in the United States.
5. The Deposit shall be full and just compensation and in full satisfaction of any and all claims of whatsoever nature against the United States by reason of the institution and prosecution of this action and taking of the Subject Property and all appurtenances thereunto belonging in fee simple
6. The Deposit shall be subject to all liens, encumbrances, and charges of whatsoever nature existing against the Subject Property at the time of vesting of title thereto in the United States and all such taxes, assessments, liens and encumbrances shall be payable by the Owners.
7. The Owners warrant that on the date of taking they had exclusive right to their proportional interest in the Deposit, excepting the interest of parties having liens or encumbrances of record and unpaid taxes and assessments, if any. The Owners further warrant that no other person or entity is entitled to the receive compensation for the Subject Property other than those listed in paragraph 2 above. In the event that any other person or entity is ultimately determined by a court of competent jurisdiction to have any right to receive compensation for the Subject Property, the Owners shall refund into the Registry of the Court the compensation distributed herein, or such part thereof as the Court may direct, with interest thereon calculated in accordance with the provision of 40 U.S.C. § 3116, from the date of the receipt of the deposit by the Owners to the date of their repayment into the Registry of the Court.
8. The parties shall be responsible for their own legal fees, costs, and expenses (including attorneys' fees, consultants' fees, and any other expenses).
9. Upon the entry of the Final Judgment, the parties may seek immediate distribution of the Deposit, together with any interest earned thereon while on deposit, if any.
10. The Owners shall save and hold harmless the United States of America from all claims or liability resulting from any unrecorded liens, leases or agreements affecting the Property on the date of taking. DATED: October 3, 2016
/s/_________
GEORGE H. WU, U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE Respectfully submitted, EILEEN M. DECKER
United States Attorney
DOROTHY M. SCHOUTEN
Assistant United States Attorney
Chief, Civil Division
ROBYN-MARIE LYON MONTELEONE
Assistant United States Attorney
Chief, General Civil Section, Civil Division /s/_________
JONATHAN B. KLINCK
Assistant United States Attorney Attorneys for Plaintiff
United States of America