The Weston Forum reports that a jury in Stamford Connecticut has awarded $5,000,000 to a property owner who was prevented by the town from developing and selling his property, and eventually lost it by foreclosure. See Patricia Gay, Jury Awards $5 Million to Stones Trail Against the Town of Weston. Click on http://www.thewestonforum.com/24228/jury-awards-5-million-to-stones-trail-against-town-of-weston/
The jury found that the owner was denied equal protection, due process of law, and that “the Town of Weston imposed an inverse condemnation on Stone Trail’s property.” The facts reported in this article suggest that this jury verdict was amply justified; among other things, it tells us that the town’s First Selectman said in a meeting that the town was going to “shut down” the owner and keep him from developing his property. However, we are puzzled because the article also says that the case isn’t quite over because the judge is yet to rule “on the final inverse condemnation counts.”