By Alric Lindsay
Lovell Fay Marriott pleaded guilty in Court today, September 17, 2024, to failing to comply with an enforcement notice regarding a wall she built without planning permission on her property. Marriott contested the charge saying that was not aware that she required planning permission.
Background
According to Magistrate Gunn, Marriott was served an enforcement notice in May 2024.
Gunn explained that it was alleged that Marriott or somebody built a wooden wall or fence higher than 4 feet tall on her property without planning permission. Marriott was allegedly given instructions regarding the illegal construction but did not follow them.
Marriott’s challenges allegation
However, Marriott did not agree with Magistrate Gunn’s description of the allegation. Instead, Marriott said that nothing was ever mentioned to her, and no document was served on her telling her not to build the wall or fence.
Marriott having refuted the receipt of an enforcement notice, Magistrate Gunn asked the prosecution to provide evidence that Marriott was properly served a copy of the enforcement notice.
The prosecution confirmed an “enforcement notice [was] sent by registered mail to the post address listed on the land register.”
Regarding this, Marriott noted that the address used to send the enforcement notice was her ex-husband’s post office box. In fact, she has not received mail from that box in 20 years.
However, Magistrate Gunn explained that the authorities were only following the law by sending the enforcement notice to the address noted in the land registry. She added that it is the landowner’s responsibility to update the land registry.
Next steps
Concerning what would happen next with the wall, Magistrate Gunn asked Marriott whether she planned to apply to the planning department to keep it.
While Marriott confirmed that she would make the relevant application, Magistrate Gunn warned that pending approval by planning, Marriott must not do any further work on the wall or fence.
However, Marriott disagreed, saying that she put the wall there to protect herself from the fumes from her neighbour’s generator which allegedly runs 24 hours per day.
She added:
That’s one of the main reasons why the wall is there, because I need to have a little sanity in my space. In my own space. So I put that wall there. Planning needs to remove that generator that’s running for 24 hours. That’s what they need to focus on and not the wall that is protecting me from being murdered by my neighbour.
She continued with details about the finishing work she needed to do on the other side of the wall, notwithstanding the judge’s warning that further work would constitute offences.
Next steps
After the discussion, Magistrate Gunn said the next step would be setting a sentencing date.
Marriott explained that she would be travelling in connection with a funeral and asked whether Zoom could be used to do the sentencing.
Magistrate Gunn explained that, according to the Grand Court’s rules, the defendant should always be present for the sentence.
Magistrate Gunn then bound over Marriott to return to Court for sentencing on November 25.
