[ckissick]

Obviously he was in the wrong. You don't punish an over-zealous planner with death. And you don't build without a permit.

But I won't be surprised if (and when?) a property owner storms into a planning department and sprays the place with machine gun fire. Around here they have bankrupted families for no good reason, by denying a permit for a house.

One example of the lunacy: I have a client who has been trying to build on a 110-acre parcel for 10 years now. No matter what he proposes, he's shot down, and for no good reason. He just wants to replace an old POS house with a new one. It's a long story, but his building sites are rejected because it's too close to a pond, or too close to agricultural soil, or too close to a slope with sensitive grass, or too close to a willow tree, or the house would be seen by a neighbor. The last possible building site was shot down because one eucalyptus tree would have to come down, and it might, yes, might, become a butterfly habitat someday.

My client has the patience of Job, but I bet there are some out there who would have cracked by now. Most jobs I work on have similar stories, but not quite as bad. I'd hate to see a rampage happen, but I'm expecting one somewhere, someday.