Man Files 2nd Lawsuit Against Village Officials Over Treehouse

BABYLON VILLAGE, NY — A Babylon man recently filed a second lawsuit after a three years legal battle with village officials over a treehouse he built for his children in 2018, claiming he was targeted.

The situation began in 2018 after local resident John Lepper began building a treehouse in the backyard of his home for his son's birthday. Shortly after, he received a letter from Village of Babylon building inspector stating that he needed a permit for the treehouse. Lepper claims he believed he did not need the permit since the village code states that permits are required for structures over 90 square feet.

Regardless, Lepper says he applied for the permit after receiving the letter but still received multiple building code violations for the structure and was charged with over $1,000 in fines.

In the second lawsuit he filed against village officials, he claims he was targeted by village officials after he became outspoken when he found a syringe and hypodermic needle in his yard which led him to build the treehouse for his children in order to protect them.

He says that his neighbors have similar structures in their yards, yet none had to undergo the same requirements.

According to the lawsuit, village officials allegedly "intended to take advantage of the voluntary, but not legally required, application" in order to collect fines.

After building the structure for his son's birthday in July 2018, Lepper received three summons for the treehouse. During a meeting with the village building inspector he was told that it violated the village code and that he owed $1,750 in fines. Lepper claims that the fines were unwarranted since he did not receive a notice of violation. A month later, they took the matter to court.

The village judge ruled that Lepper did violate the code since his application did not include a drawing of the structure. The lawsuit claims he paid the fines and then went to appeal.
The appellate court ruled that he did not require a permit for the treehouse.

After years in courts and spending money on fines and court fees, Lepper filed the first was to seek "injunctive relief" for the destruction and removal of the treehouse, according to the lawsuit.

His second lawsuit is seeking damages for violating his constitutional rights.

"He was attacked just for living in the Village of Babylon and raising his children as he sees fit," Lepper's attorney, Cory Morris said.