Oakland’s City Council has voted to impose a fine of $915,135.40 on Nigerian medical doctor, Matthew Bernard, and his wife, Lynn Warner, for allegedly cutting down 38 legally protected trees on and around their Claremont Avenue property in the United States.
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/TheNigerialawyer-WhatsApp-Channel1.jpg")
A California-based media platform, KQED, reported that the decision followed a public hearing on Tuesday, where more than 20 residents demanded enforcement of Oakland’s tree protection laws.
The residents argued that the leafy tree canopies in the area were important for wildfire prevention, public health and environmental equity.
Diaspora Tales had reported last month that Bernard and Warner said they removed the trees based on the advice of an arborist.
At the hearing, Bernard told the City Council that the trees removed from his property nearly four years ago were “dead, dying, leaning,” or in “hazardous condition.”
The city, however, disagreed and imposed the fine on Bernard and Warner. It also placed a claim on their property, a move that could prevent them from developing or selling the land until the fine is paid.
Defending the fine, a community tree specialist, Erys Gagnez, said trees of that size could not be easily replaced.
“Trees of that size are not commercially available for replacement. Even with replanting, it will take decades, even centuries, to restore the ecological and protective functions that were lost. The scale of the fine reflects this reality,” Gagnez said.
According to the report, the Oakland City Council voted 5-3 to enforce the record fine over the removal of the protected trees in 2021 and 2022.
Councilmember Janani Ramachandran, who represents the area, supported the fine and was joined by councilmembers Noel Gallo, Kevin Jenkins, Zac Unger and Charlene Wang.
Councilmembers Rowena Brown, Carroll Fife and Ken Houston voted against the fine.
Ramachandran said the council needed to send a strong message that people could not violate Oakland’s laws without consequences.
“I urge my colleagues to make a statement here about this issue and also to be crystal clear to anyone who wants to come into our city and trash our city and violate our laws and think that you can get away with it,” Ramachandran said.
“Today, I think we can send a bold statement that the answer is no,” she added.
The property owners, however, disputed several of the city’s findings. They alleged that about 25 of the trees were already dead or had fallen by the time Public Works officials began responding to neighbourhood complaints about the removals.
The removed trees reportedly included coast live oaks and bigleaf maples, among other species.
Bernard suggested a compromise, asking that he be allowed to build a home on the Claremont Avenue site, located between Stonewall Road and Rispin Drive, and thereafter replant trees after construction.
“I believe we acted in good faith, followed city instructions, relied on city communications while addressing documented safety hazards,” Bernard told the council.
However, council members who supported the fine insisted that the law must be enforced.
Councilmember Kevin Jenkins said his vote in favour of the fine was partly to counter the impression that people could come into Oakland, break the law and get away with it.
“As a council, we have to decide if we’re going to enforce our laws and whether they mean anything,” Jenkins said.
Councilmember Charlene Wang also criticised the city’s process, saying it was unacceptable that the law allowed property owners to appeal tree removal fines directly to the City Council instead of going through an administrative hearing process.
“I think it’s wildly inappropriate, to be honest, in terms of the amount of time this specific case has consumed,” she said.
Tuesday’s hearing was the third time the matter came before the council after a previous meeting ended in a deadlock.
But Councilmember Rowena Brown, who opposed the fine, said she could not support the penalty because it exceeded the value of the property, involved trees on private land, and the city would likely have allowed some of the trees to be removed during a normal building permit process.
“While the drastic change to the landscape is jarring to the community, we must ask ourselves a fundamental question of justice: why are we fining a property owner the full replacement value for the trees the city would have likely authorised him to remove during the standard building permit process,” Brown said.
Brown described the property owners’ conduct as “100% egregious,” but suggested a compromise fine covering only trees that were within the buildable footprint of the property.
Councilmember Carroll Fife, who also opposed the fine, raised concerns about racial implications, noting that Bernard is Black and was trying to clear land for construction in a neighbourhood that had historically excluded people of colour.
“I find it interesting that we can have an entire area of the city of Oakland colonised where probably hundreds of thousands of trees have been felled but the first level of accountability is to a Black man who is cutting trees on his own property,” Fife said.
She, however, added that the trees should never have been cut down and supported Brown’s proposed compromise.
The fine now leaves Bernard and Warner facing nearly $1 million in penalties, while the claim placed on their property could affect any attempt to develop or sell the land until the penalty is resolved.
[A MUST HAVE] Evidence Act Demystified With Recent And Contemporary Cases And Materials
Available now for NGN 40,000 at ASC Publications, 10, Boyle Street, Onikan, Lagos. Beside High Court, TBS. Email publications@ayindesanni.com or WhatsApp +2347056667384. Purchase Link: https://paystack.com/buy/evidence-act-complete-annotation
______________________________________________________________________
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR LAWYERS: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE
Reimagine your practice with the power of AI “...this is the only Nigerian book I know of on the topic.” — Ohio Books Ltd
Authored by Ben Ijeoma Adigwe, Esq., ACIArb (UK), LL.M, Dip. in Artificial Intelligence, Director, Delta State Ministry of Justice, Asaba, Nigeria.
Bonus:
Get a FREE eBook titled “How to Use the AI in Legalpedia and Law Pavilion” with every purchase.
How to Order: 📞 Call, Text, or WhatsApp: 08034917063 | 07055285878 📧 Email: benadigwe1@gmail.com 🌐 Website: www.benadigwe.com
Ebook Version: Access directly online at: https://selar.com/prv626
______________________________________________________________________ “Bridging Theory And Courtroom Practice” — Hagler Sunny Okorie, Nathaniel Ngozi Ikeocha Unveil ‘Functional’ Tort Law Book For Nigerian Legal System
The book, titled The Law of Torts in Nigeria: A Functional Approach, authored by Professor Hagler Sunny Okorie Ph.D and Ikeocha, Nathaniel Ngozi Esq, offers law students, practitioners, and academics a comprehensive guide to understanding and applying tort law in Nigerian courts. Interested buyers can place orders via the following contact numbers: 08028636615, 08037667945, 08032253813, or +234 902 196 2209.
______________________________________________________________________
“Enhance Legal Practice With Authoritative Reports” — Alexander Payne Offers Comprehensive Law Reports, Spanning Over A Century Of Nigerian Jurisprudence
Interested buyers are encouraged to place their orders and enquiries via:
0704 444 4777, 0704 444 4999, 0818 199 9888
Website: www.alexandernigeria.com
