[TGE-mail] Does anyone know City ordinance/lawsregarding Building Inspectors?

[S. Mary Henry]

When I first read about this, I wondered if the person was really a City 
plumbing inspector.  Could it be someone casing the place?  Sounds like this 
person was even in the basement.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mitch Smith" <mls at chefdiana.com>
To: <tgena at lists.more.net>; "Jason Lukasek" <jlukasek at hotmail.com>
Sent: Saturday, November 25, 2006 12:04 PM
Subject: Re: [TGE-mail] Does anyone know City ordinance/lawsregarding 
Building Inspectors?


> The St. Louis City Ordinances are available online.
>
> See http://www.slpl.lib.mo.us/cco/ords/data/ord6615.htm for the plumbing
> ordinance, which includes the inspection and right of entry provisions.
> Section 105.8 concerns right of entry.
>
> I'm not a lawyer so offer no comment as to whether the inspection of
> your property was permissible. It would be nice to get a straight answer
> as to why your property was selected, but then bureaucrats do tend to
> act like bureaucrats so I wouldn't be terribly surprised if you never
> get a clear explanation on that point.
>
> - Mitch Smith
>
> On Thu, 2006-11-23 at 12:51 -0600, Jason Lukasek wrote:
>> Hello neighbors,
>>
>> First off, happy Thanksgiving to everyone!
>>
>> I'm trying to obtain information regarding St. Louis City law and/or
>> ordinances regarding how City Building Inspectors conduct their
>> inspections. Those of you who own rental and/or commercial property
>> may likely know the answer.
>>
>> A City plumbing inspector recently made an unauthorized inspection of
>> one of my rental properties. He told the 1st floor tenant that he was
>> responding to an "emergency" call from the 2nd floor resident. He did
>> not know the name of the tenant who supposedly called, nor did he
>> disclose what the "emergency" was. Most importantly, I was never
>> contacted, even though the same inspector made several attempts to
>> gain entry to the building over several weeks. Moreover, my tenants
>> never called the City; both the 2nd and 1st floor tenants have signed
>> statements for me indicating that they never made any calls to the
>> City, nor have they ever experienced any plumbing related emergency.
>>
>> What he then cited had nothing to do with his alleged reasons for
>> entering the building. He cited improper waste stack connections and
>> venting in the basement, which have nothing to do with "emergency"
>> plumbing on the 2nd floor. It seems to me that the Inspector used
>> false information about an alleged emergency call to gain access to a
>> building and then cite several random, outdated plumbing code issues.
>> I maintain that this person had absolutely no right to enter my
>> building without just reason, and this is paramount to trespassing.
>>
>> I am desperately trying to find out my rights as a property owner.
>> Surely, there must be some due process on the City books that
>> delineate how Inspectors are required to respond to such things. Let's
>> assume that there IS an emergency - shouldn't the property owner be
>> notified? Do I have recourse as an owner to petition the City to drop
>> these citations?
>>
>> So, if anyone has ANY feedback regarding this, I would very much
>> appreciate to hear it. Also, if any lawyers are reading this and wish
>> to offer their help, I will be happy to discuss compensation for their
>> involvement.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> Jason Lukasek
>> 35xx Crittenden
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Jason Lukasek
>> 314.657.8390
>>
>>
>>
>>
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> -- 
> Mitch Smith <mls at chefdiana.com>
>
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