Falmouth Massachusetts Wind Turbine Jury Trial - What Really Happened
Falmouth Massachusetts USA
Wind Turbine Jury Verdict - Letter
The jury decision that a nuisance could not be found for the Andersens has been cited by those who want to continue to litigate not just against the neighbors but against three separate decisions by our own Falmouth Zoning Board of Appeals.
The verdict might have been quite different if the jury had had fair access to all the facts. Indeed, the judge considered calling a mistrial after opening statements by accomplished insurance company lawyers, supporting the town, limited so many facts. Facts hidden from the jury included:
- The jury did not know that the Falmouth ZBA had determined that there was a nuisance at the Andersen home.
- The jury did not learn that both turbines were under a court-ordered injunction to operate only half the time (only during daylight hours), because the high bar of detrimental impacts had been recognized by a Superior Court judge.
- The jury did not know that a special permit had been denied by the Falmouth ZBA and that Wind 1 has been completely off since September 2015.
- The jury did not know that infrasound tests have been conducted outside and inside the Andersen home, showing significant negative impacts on the residents.
- The jury did not have a site visit. The jury never heard this industrial wind turbine noise.
- The jury did not know that the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection conducted sound tests showing multiple violations of the state noise pollution limit of 10 decibels.
Considering the circumstances above, the result was—sadly—not surprising.
We understand that for those not involved, the problems caused by the wind turbines are not easy to understand and that the seven-year chain of events is confusing. However, the fundamental problem is simple. These 400-foot-high industrial turbines are too big to be so close (a quarter mile) to residences.
Falmouth’s ZBA members made multiple visits, in varying wind conditions, to the Andersen home. They listened to the turbines for themselves before concluding that the turbines’ effects are real and cannot be ignored.
Contrast this with jury members who never made a site visit, didn’t hear the turbines and didn’t know that our ZBA had found a nuisance!
The selectmen have now paused in the legal process. A settlement that respects their own ZBA and the suffering and costs of thousands of dollars by the neighbors is in their hands.
Kathie C. Mount and Day O. Mount, Blacksmith Shop Road, Falmouth
http://www.capenews.net/falmouth/opinion/wind-turbine-jury-verdict-...
Views: 156
Comment
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Comment by Jim Wiegand on July 9, 2017 at 12:36pm
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Despite what a lawyer says, a reasonable doubt to a small minded fool is much different than it is to someone else. IQ standards need not be that high. Maybe the solution is to allow for the jury busting idiots by only needing 10 or 11 of 12 jurors to agree.
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Comment by Eric A. Tuttle on July 9, 2017 at 8:05am
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What ever happened to presenting "The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth" ? This should have been a mistrial once discovered or the verdict nullified. Meanwhile a Fine (per day of any violation or multiple violations) should be imposed. The same Jurors should be empaneled to determine a verdict with "The Whole Truth". Yes Jim, Qualifications is important. This is what we tried to accomplish this Legislative session on Maine's Mining issue. But some of these clowns deem themselves to be Experts, even with only a HS education.
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Comment by Eskutassis on July 8, 2017 at 11:58pm
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I agree with you Jim. I have served on several juries, seem to always get picked so I don't agree about the IQ standards, however on one jury the case was an assault with intent to murder. The guy wasn't too bright, and his lawyer was worse, and he ADMITTED he broke in the house with an 8" hunting knife and actually admitted he attacked two women sending both to the hospital. He was caught with the bloody knife and the jury took FOUR days to get a guilty verdict. Many of the jurors thought the two women he attacked were just a big of dirtbags as he was, so they deserved to be punished too. The foreman of the jury was a woman who was a kindergarten teacher with a very small voice and no will to convict him. I finally took over on the last afternoon and we got a conviction.
About a month later I ran into the Judge at the 19th hole at the golf course and he came over and shook my hand. LOL.
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I have said this many times over the years.......... If you are going to have a a fair impartial jury we need to establish IQ standards for selection. I have seen the process at work first hand, many people simply do not have the intelligence or background to make important decisions. This observation also includes some Judges. Of course with attorneys is does not matter because they are paid to lie. Attorneys also look for and pick gullible dimwits to place on a jury.
Maine as Third World Country:
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Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT
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(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/
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Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law
Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future
"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."
https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/
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