BENTON – U.S. District Judge Staci Yandle denied motions to dismiss claims that Nathan Marlen of St. Clair County and construction company owner Doug Blankenship of Bond County cut trees that belonged to Joseph Lucas of Missouri.
On June 14, Yandle rejected Marlen’s argument that Lucas failed to state a claim and Blankenship’s argument that Lucas didn’t allege enough damage to satisfy federal court jurisdiction.
She found Lucas met the $75,000 requirement for federal jurisdiction by submitting a $210,750 estimate for replacement of his trees.
Lucas bought 15 acres along the Kaskaskia River in Fayette County in 2016.
He sued Marlen and Blankenship this January.
His counsel, Britton St. Onge of St. Louis, claimed Lucas, his family, and their guests used the property primarily for hunting.
St. Onge claimed Blankenship’s company entered the property from Marlen’s adjacent property at Marlen’s direction in 2021.
He added that Blankenship enlarged a ditch, excavated a ditch, and cut trees without permission.
St. Onge wrote that the new ditch blocked easy access from the main portion of the Lucas property to the portion across the ditch.
He alleged trespass, conversion, and violation of the Illinois Wrongful Tree Cutting Act.
He claimed replacement of the trees would cost about $200,000, and the law obligated Marlen and Blankenship to pay three times the stumpage value.
He defined stumpage value as value per board foot for the merchantable portion of each tree.
In February, Blankenship’s counsel Tom DeVore and Jeffrey Mollet of Greenville moved to dismiss the complaint for lack of federal jurisdiction.
“Plaintiff’s claim of $200,000 in damages is seriously undermined by the fact that he purchased the total parcel of real property for the amount of $84,000 which is barely 40% of the alleged damages,” they wrote.
They claimed Lucas failed to allege how many trees might have been removed.
They added that if he was unable to bring forth proof, he should pursue his claims in state court.
Marlen’s counsel Daniel Hasenstab and John Cunningham of Belleville also moved to dismiss.
They claimed an allegation that Marlen directed Blankenship’s activity wasn’t sufficient to impose liability on Marlen.
They claimed Lucas didn’t plead any agency, contract, or other relationship between Marlen and Blankenship, “so the court can reasonably infer that no such relationship existed.”
St. Onge responded to Marlen’s motion in March by claiming that a person who directs the commission of a trespass by another is liable for the trespass.
He claimed tree cutting law creates liability for any party found to have intentionally cut timber or caused it to be cut.
St. Onge responded to Blankenship’s motion by filing an estimate from Paul Tree Farms of Pleasant Prairie.
It specified 90 oaks, 15 cypress trees, 15 beech trees, 10 elms, 10 maples, and 10 honey locusts, at $850 for each tree.
Each tree would weigh 5,000 pounds, including the root ball.
Other charges would run to $83,250.
St. Onge also challenged Blankenship’s reference to the $84,000 price of the property.
He claimed Blankenship offered no authority for a proposition that damages for harm to land can never exceed the price for which the land was purchased.
Yandle found the estimate from Paul Tree Farms was sufficient to satisfy the requirement for her jurisdiction over Blankenship.
She found Lucas sufficiently stated claims for trespass, conversion, and wrongful tree cutting against Marlen.
She has set trial for next June.
On June 8, the parties notified her that they agreed to mediate with former magistrate judge Stephen Williams.