This is one of those stories that often never makes it to the Front Page of any newspaper or website. It’s a story about Property Rights and Eminent domain. It’s the story of one man who tried to fight back, and sadly it’s the story of a man who lost it all in the process. It’s also a story that can happen to anyone who is reading this article.
The story begins back in 2009 when Andrew Wordes, otherwise known as the Roswell Chicken Man, began his fight to raise chickens on his property. In February 2009, the city of Roswell, GA started to cite Andrew Wordes for raising livestock in his backyard. Wordes, who had started raising chickens on his .97-acre homestead in 2005, decided to fight back. And guess what he won.
But sadly, that’s when the real trouble started:
You see, the story actually has very little to do with chickens. While the city of Roswell, and cities just like it across America, would like people to believe it’s a story about chickens, the real story is about the rights of property owners.
When taking a look at a map that was published back in 2003, as part of Roswell’s 2030 Comprehensive Plan for city improvements, one thing becomes painfully obvious; The city had already planned to take Wordes’ property.
The Map showed that the city had major plans for his property. In fact, his property sat right in the middle of a planned city park. His property was being targeted for “city improvements”, and this fight had nothing to do with chickens. The chickens were really just the catalyst for the city to unlawfully seize his land.
After initially winning his fight in municipal court, the City of Roswell made Wordes life a living hell.
The Harassment Campaign Against Andrew Wordes
On Dec. 14, 2009, the city council approved a new ordinance banning roosters and using lot size to limit how many chickens a resident could keep. Wordes claimed that the harassment started immediately after the meeting when Roswell police ticketed him for no insurance and a number of other moving violations.
- In September of 2010, Roswell prosecuted Wordes under the new ordinance claiming he had too many birds for his lot size. The judge found him not guilty since he had the chickens before the ordinance became law.
- In September of 2010, he was convicted of grading sediment on his land without a permit and having inoperable vehicles in his yard. He was sentenced to community service.
- In November of 2010, code enforcement served Wordes with a nuisance citation.
- After winning twice in court against the city, the county then got involved and actually cited him for “not properly stacking his firewood.”
- In 2011, the 84-year-old women who held Mr. Wordes’ mortgage was harassed by the city into selling Wordes mortgage for forty cents on the dollar. The city then began the foreclosure process.
- While in the process of trying to save his home, Andrew Wordes was arrested by Roswell Police on the day that he was to bring paperwork that would’ve delayed his bankruptcy and the foreclosure on his home.
- Wordes was jailed for violating his probation after the city claimed he only served 122 of the 150 hours of community service that he had been ordered to serve. He then served 99 days in jail.
After his release, he placed a sign on his property that read “Trespassers will be construed as a bodily threat” and then waited for authorities to arrive and remove him.
On Monday at 10:45 a.m. Marshalls arrived at the home. After a two-hour standoff, Wordes advised the Marshall that they needed to immediately leave the property. That’s when the explosion happened. After years of battling for his right to keep his land, Wordes finally had enough.
On a website dedicated to Andrew Wordes, one of his friends wrote:
We all lost a little something today. Andrew was a man of faith, with a strong love for God. He was a staunch Constitutionalist with a passion for our freedoms and liberties.
You pushed Mr. Wordes to this point. You marched around Roswell bashing Andrew, annihilating his character, marking him as crazy and filing lawsuits whenever you could, bankrupting him and denying him rights given to property owners in the United States.
Andrew fought the good fight, not just for himself but for others because he knew it could happen to anyone. And it is. Eminent domain is being abused all over our country, just look it up. Communities are plagued with repeated abuses of the use of eminent domain. It’s tragic and your neighborhood could be next. Andrew fought to his last breath, for himself, for me, for you. In his mind, he went on his terms. Right out of Atlas Shrugged. Andrew is at peace now but it’s not over.
The sad truth about this story is its 100% true.
It’s also not an isolated incident.
From the Federal Government seizing property because of “environmental regulations”, to local municipalities who use code enforcement agents codes to intimidate people into giving up their land, we have a huge problem in this country. Our property rights are being shredded before our eyes, and it’s only a matter of time before this story becomes an everyday occurrence.
The Chicken Man, Andrew Wordes, in his own words from an interview he gave last month on the Rusty Humphries show.
This is one of the reasons that EVERYONE should dump their “deed” and get a land patent on their property. A land patent has been tested and upheld in court. They can’t take your land with a patent, a deed gives ownership to the govt with you being the tenant who pays usage tax to the govt. Want to know WHO really owns the land? Stop paying your property (usage) tax and the real owner will come and take possession.
This is going on in many areas in the US but people always have an excuse.till it is all out revolution and all is under Marshall law.Why do you think Obama is changing regimes and training russian and foreign a soldiers for amrican home land security and fema camps being prepared.What the FUCK people WAKE up it is coming they are attacking or rights and taking step to slowly remove any chances of overturning anything with out major revolution.We take this country back far from the grips of tyrants.Wish us all luck hope to find some of you after the shtf..
Makes you wonder if we’re still living in the land of the free…doesn’t seem like it, does it? I’d say the city of Roswell virtually murdered this poor man – and all those asinine city officials should be held accountable for wrongful death by his estate. Shameful.
To everyone out there in the US! Hay our for fathers had it right! ” We The People ” How much more before we make a stand for our way of life and our rights as Amercains!
you know when it comes to the point of taking your own life. I would much rather take the lives of those destroying mine, if I die in the process so be it, but at least I will have vengeance! f@ck the Government cronies!
That happened right here in my home turf. The military decided they wanted to expand the air base and proceeded to take land from the nearby families, including a third generation property owned by an 84 year old veteran farmer. A protest ensued, whereas the local community stood up, and aboriginal groups in the area joined, pitching tents, putting up barricades and trying to stop the injustice occurring. The military cited they had rights to take his farm for government interests, and while the protesters were standing in United fronts, they slipped in through a back road they built, and bulldozed his house in the dark of the night. It was an outrage for the entire community, this man was the 3rd generation to live and work the land, how can we expect to buy food in the store if all the prime farmland is taken?? Meyers Creek farm, Trenton, On look it up. It was a sad sad day for the town. Shame on the military. They don’t always protect and serve, and in this case YES I will stand in front of their guns and not behind them, they were WRONG
I could never have done what he did. I would never have the courage. God bless the real rebublic. It is not america. We attack the international community who say “Death To America”. While im not saying ISIS is nothing, we have the resources to smash them. And blow up the bits. Why dont we? Because it wouldent be “profitable” to larger corporations. We are all fools. G-d help us all. G-d preserve the soul of Andrew. He didint deserve this. And valencia? I bet the military thought nothing of the crime they commited. They considered it “normal” and your protests “annoying things buy cilvilians”. How dare they destroy the home of a third generation farmer, much less one of their own!
I was his girlfriend at the end, we had been discussing our wedding the night before. We were in a box and he just wanted a fair way out he would have walked away at the end if they had been fair to him and offered him money for the land. He was ready to start over with me. Rosewell took this mans life a piece at a time. I watched for over 2 years. We fought with everything we had but they were stronger. This is what happens when a person is not given a choice. The voiceless will find a way to get the last word. I still miss my Andrew and his number is still on my phone.
Probably not a suicide. Sad thing, Gotta watch your back. Dot your i’s and cross your t’s, not violate any ordinaces.
The city of Roswell should be tried for murder, they can say well I didn’t pull the trigger but it is the same, the blood is on your hands. Every town, city, state have to many stupid ordinances, they are made up mostly by people that are not even from the area, they moved in and took over. Citizens of the area are living happy carefree bothering no one until the outlaws come in and start trouble, and look around you it is everywhere, why not treat people with kindness, if they are doing something as simple as having a few chickens on their property so be it leave them alone.
Roswell is taken over by aliens. God bless this man for attempting to protect his property rights and those of all of us. It is a sad story and yet it is an inspiration. He’s a hero.
Aliens are demons. It’s easy to find what demons don’t like and then take action to make things right for others. That Roswell crash might not be an accident. There could have been trillions of tiny alien-demons that escaped from the craft that crashed on purpose to give us technology to destroy our planet. Prayer is a huge threat because it’s real. God created things through thought. So can you.
So he was a renter, not a property owner.
This really sucks. The man obviously was searching for a lawyer to help him with this issue. The judge was wrong for not giving him a continuance. I’ve had a similar situation with a rent house I own. A renter destroyed my home in one week’s time. I called out the police the officers thought it was criminal damages. When I took it before the District Attorney he would not even look at my picture evidence he just claimed it’s a civil matter. I called the police out again to make a claim on all the household furniture that was stolen over $1,500 worth and they did not even make a report said that I was trying to be vindictive and since the criminal damages didn’t work for me I was trying to get them for theft. So now I have a home that’s virtually worth nothing. And about trying to get a lawyer I understand where this man was having trouble finding someone to represent him. Lawyers don’t want to help people they want EASY MONEY!
It’s extremely important that we all see these things for what they are, and recognize the steady march of tyranny approaching. I would strongly suggest a heavy investment in precious metals and paper securities. I recommend lead, brass and toilet paper… maybe two shipping containers of each.
I don’t care if it was said three years ago, I agree with Victor Thane. This post is about a man who was treated extremely poorly, let alone unconstitutionally and took his own life because he couldn’t take it anymore! Can you even imagine? Can you possibly put yourself in his shoes? How could something have pushed him so far as to take his own precious life? My heart goes out to his fiancé… evil people at the helm of our government isn’t just in high places; it’s in our small cities, too… There are all sorts of people that crave power and will do just about anything to feel it. So many people on this post ended up in left field picking grapes. It would be nice to stick to the topic. Especially something like this…
I don’t know how any of you other people feel about the condition of our world, but I believe we are past the point of no return as far as our rights being slowly taken away ( this post is a perfect sample ), martial law and food, medicine, water, utility, communication shortages….
History does and can/will repeat itself. I strongly suggest if you don’t know Jesus Christ, get to know Him. Your eternal soul is at stake…and we just may be here to see Him come back to judge us all. God Bless Andrew’s soul. God Bless everyone ~
Please don’t judge/berate me. You’ll just be wasting your time. Nothing can effect of hurt me when I have Jesus Christ on my side.
This is what I understand from this story: A guy wanted to raise chickens and live alone with them, but he got in trouble for housing too many, and was too tired for being bothered by the government about it, so he commit suicide. Is that accurate?
This man fought the good fight. So much for being secure in your property. Using comprehensive plans and stormwater runoff as weapons is something that is new to me… infrastructure warfare. These “incorporated” cities use civil codes to behave in uncivil ways… engaging in behaviour that is inditinguishable from slavers, thieves and extortionists.
This is truly sad and an injustice , happens to be being done to my friend since jr hi ands a recent member of the NM(Lea County )cowboy hall of fame Brice Chapman here in Lubbock Tx right now !! he needs legal help if any one knows anything or anyone , please help he is in county now for contempt , he was sick and did not make trial , they lured him down to ranch & heritage center for a roping show and arrested him in front of his daughter .