TOKENSHA, Mich.—A FOX 17 Problem Solvers Investigation is back to a boiling point in parts of West Michigan. J.R. Logging was accused in May of ripping off customers and destroying private property. Now more people have come forward with complaints saying the logger is back at it again.
Dallas Anderson, the owner, has upset people in Allegan, Calhoun, and Kalamazoo Counties with his logging, which is making people wonder how he keeps getting away with it.
“He needs to be stopped,” said Rosanne Tony.
Tony said she’s a victim of Anderson from April. Tony said she didn’t call Anderson for work, but her neighbor hired him. She looked outside and said Anderson was cutting down four of her walnut trees. Anderson told her that her neighbors said he could chop them down, however, he never asked or got proof of where the property lines were.
Tony filed a police report and called a lawyer because the four, 3-foot diameter walnut trees can be worth up to $2,000 dollars each. Anderson only offered her $1,200 for his mistake.
“I wanted him to compensate, but not for that little amount he was offering for it,” Tony said.
Tony said that while Anderson was in the process of cutting down her trees he knocked down a Consumers Energy power line. It wasn’t his first run-in with the power company either; Consumers Energy detailed several incidents of downed power poles and lines linked to Anderson in the past several months. The most recent incident happened on July 8th, where he owes Consumers about $7,000, but so far there’s been no payment made.
FOX 17 News checked with the Better Business Bureau who said J.R. Logging is not registered with the state and does not have a Forester License.
People like Tony are asking how he can possibly still be out there causing trouble.
Allegan County Undersheriff Frank Baker, who’s department has been called on to respond to Anderson and his logging antics, said these situations are hard to prosecute because they are civil in nature, and criminal intent his much harder to prove.
FOX 17 News talked to a civil case lawyer, Brock Veenhuis of Schroeder DeGraw PLLC out of Marshall, to see why more people aren’t taking the legal route to stop Anderson.
“In Michigan, you can prove that someone wrongfully and intentionally and voluntarily removed trees without consent, and you can typically get three times the damages,” said Veenhuis.
That seems like great news for Tony who could theoretically walk away with $24,000, but here’s why she’s thinking twice.
“If the person or entity is sort of underfunded then there is a difficulty in collecting on the judgment and that serves as a deterrent for people who want to pursue a law in the first place,” said Veenhuis.
Veenhuis has done a little research, and believes that there wouldn’t be a lot of money for Tony to realistically collect from Anderson. Basically, Tony might spend up to $10,000 fighting Anderson in court, and she could very well win, but she may never see a dime.
“In the United States, we don’t have a debtor’s prison so if someone owes money we don’t throw them in jail because they can’t pay it,” said Veenhuis.
FOX 17 News heard from Anderson late Wednesday night. He told us to talk to his lawyers, but would not provide the information for who they were and where we could reach them.
