A Madison woman was convicted of simple assault by threat after she was arrested for threatening and casting a fishhook at an 11 year-old boy who was jet-skiing on the lake at Natchez Trace Village in Madison.. Madison Municipal Court Judge Richard Mitchell fined Mary Watkins $500 on July 19 and ordered her to pay $143 in court costs as well. Watkins is an officer of the Natchez Trace Village Homeowners Association. She appealed the conviction to County Court. Judge Mitchell ruled she was not guilty on two counts of disturbing the peace.
Watkins' conviction is apparently the result of a dispute between her and several other residents of Natchez Trace Village in Madison. A lake owned by the Culley family is the centerpiece of the subdivision. Needless to say, it is an attraction for kids who have jet skis.
Lewis Culley III stated in a July 12, 2017 affidavit that Watkins cursed his 11 year old son and other children for riding their jetskis on the lake. He also accused her of spotlighting them as well as taking pictures of the yewts. Gene Cockrell, Jr. filed a police report of for the same incidents (p.11). His police statement claims she was using a bullhorn to curse at the kids and threw sticks at them. (p.13).
Cockrell filed a simple assault by threat charge on July 26, 2017 against Watkins. The police incident report (p.18) states:
I met with the complainant identified as Allen Cockrell who stated that he was concerned for his child's safety. Cockrell explained that his child was afraid to go out on the lake because of Mary Watkins continuously taking pictures of him and throwing sticks. Cockrell stated his 11 year old son, xxxxx, was riding a Jet Ski in Culley Lake on July 21, 2017, which is located in the Natchez Trace Village Subdivision, which is located in the City limits of Madison Mississippi. Allen Cockrell statew that his neighbor identified as Mary Watkins was casting an unbaited fishing hook at xxxx as he rode by her pier.
Mr.Cockrell also stated that this has been an ongoing issue with Mrs.Watkins harassing his child in one fashion or another.Cockrell explained that Watkins actions have escalated and become unpredictable in which he is concerned that she will eventually hurt his child .
Attorney Tommy Savants represents Watkins. The court file is posted below. Watkins is Treasurer of the HOA and is Past-President as well.
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| Watkins and the fish hook. Source: court file. |
128 comments:
Fish sticks.
NTV is a small minded community!
Check your facts she is not the president.
People who are in charge of homeowners associations are the worst regardless of the neighborhood. I guess it’s a power thing but every neighborhood I have lived in has had its share of crazy.
The neighborhood I live in has it too and one guy is always.telling homeowners to call the Sheriff. He even responded to a complaint about kids in someone’s yard by telling them to call the sheriff.
Changed it. Police report on p.34 said she was.
So if she was spotlighting them does that mean 11 year olds were riding jet skis in the dark without any adults around?
President of my HOA is extremely competent and has done an excellent job.
I know someone that lives there. Says it great neighborhood in spite of the crazy board!
Why are these jackass parents letting their kids ride jetskis in a small lake surrounded by homes? Then again it’s Mississippi; you can’t escape the rednecks anywhere in this state.
taking pictures is against the law???
Just married in March and find myself in my first HOA neighborhood. These people are nuts. This is their time to shine and have a little control. I like to do little things to piss them off. It's funny watching them get mad.
@11:50, who cares. Its not yours or mother hens duty to tell me or my children what to do. When we were kids, we were running lines at night in lakes and oxbows of the Mississippi river with and without adults around. People like you are the reason kids are so soft these days.
Awesome. Now the asshole kids on jets skis will think they’ve got free reign to annoy everyone on the lake. Nice parenting, Cockrell.
That crazy HOA lady looks like she is about to kill somebody. Needs to be locked up.
How does someone convicted of assault of a minor stay on a HOA board?
Natchez Trace Villiage is VERY small minded. I used to live there, and when my dog would go outside in MY yard people in that community would call Madison PD as they were riding by and/or walking by. The people there in that subdivision are VERY different!
What a thug POS move. Trying to injure kids who are enjoying the outdoors because you are old and want everyone else to be miserable like you. She belongs in jail and obviously can't be trusted to be around children. Only a fine for trying to kill children, what's wrong with our judges?
@11:29 - A woman is THREATENING kids and your biggest concern with this article is her board position??? SERIOUSLY???
Sounds like there is a person on here taking up for her. She must be his momma or his gf or wife!! 🙄🙄
@11:58 It's no different than buying a house next door to a golf course or a swimming pool or a tennis court or any other site of outdoor activity. It comes with the territory. If you don't want to "put up with it", DON'T buy a house there. Simple, really.
@12:06 And that’s why your kids will end up in prison and as drug addled crackheads, because you probably let the little criminals get away with murder.
Regardless of the appropriateness of the kids on jetskis or what their parents should or should not do, casting a fishhook at anyone on any type of vehicle is dangerous and stupid. She's lucky I was not the sentencing judge. And the reply about spotlighting brings up a good point: what in the hell were kids doing on jetskis at night in a small lake? The parents of any such kids would be glad I'm not the one adjudicating that, too. Based on the info reported, this sounds like a whole a lot of supposed adults making a whole lot of very bad choices and decisions, and in front of kids, and as trite as it sounds, someone is going to get hurt or worse if some common sense and mutual respect isn't injected into this situation PDQ.
Kingfish, dig some more! There has to be more to this story! I've heard of NTV and how the Board is controlled by a single, crazy person. In Madison, no less! I bet Mayor Mary LOVES having this looney bin HOA in her precious Madison.
Anybody notice that this neighborhood is in Madison the City? Wonder what the Mayor thinks about this crazy stuff going on?
Is jet skiing on the lake permitted? Let's start here.
Jet skis are a creation of Satan....
I have heard this a lot more to this story, Kingfish. Keep us posted.
@12:00 - You would be ok with someone repeatedly taking pictures of your kids in their bathing suits??? WHY is she taking pictures of these kids??? They aren’t breaking any laws... so why does she want pictures of them?? Is she trying to intimidate them or is she a pervert? It just doesn’t sound like she should be doing that at all.
Madison the City! Mayor Mary needs to clean that HOA up!
Give Gladys Kravitz a fishing pole and it goes immediately to her head.
These women in this neighborhood think they are "all that" because their husbands have mid-level management jobs while they stay home and guard the neighborhood. The worst kind of stay-at-home wife...with a couple of retired men sprinkled in who don't golf. God, shoot me if I end up somewhere like this.
@1:03, better yet, why don't we start with what on earth is going on in that neighborhood to cause that lady to go crazy and throw a hook at a kid? Gotta be more to the story. I mean I've heard of mean old people yelling, "you kids get out of my yard!" but Geez Louise! There has to be more to the background of this story!
@1:03 I've heard it's a family feud and the HOA lady is losing! Would explain her disturbing behavior.
Look closely at the picture. It looks to me like there is spray/wake from a jet ski or boat motor splashing up fairly high and close to the older couple. makes you wonder if there is more to the story.
12:00 to 1:25 no need to get smart with me. I just asked a question. You need to get over yourself. You must be one of those rich snobs at Natchez Trace Village. Get a life.
For you people at Natchez Trace Village you people all need to be locked in jail for illegally using police resource and wasting the court's time.
The little jackass kid should be strung up by his buster browns for disturbing the peace. He was endangering himself, others and probably one or two endangered species.
@1:03. The police were called numerous times. If jet skis weren’t allowed, the police would prob say something to the kids as well. Sounds like they are allowed.
@1:36. I’m not sure where you got that this HOA is being run by Stay-at-home Moms. I know someone in that neighborhood. It’s actually run by ONE bitter, old woman. She tells the board what to do and when to do it. They are all either scared of her or she allows them to get away with things so they won’t speak up against her. She may not be listed as “president” but make no mistake she is the one running things. She has been on the board for 30 years. She’s only begun to show her ass after the developer of the neighborhood died. She wouldn’t have dared tried this while they were alive.
I assume since these precious yewts are under the age of 12 they all have someone over 21 riding with them?
Sorry 12:06, would hate for you to have to sober up long enough to take responsibility for your kids. Lakes and oxbows are a little different than ripping around in a subdivision.
HOAs are definitely nuts (Whisper Lake and an alderman come to mind) BUT
there is definitely more to this story. What's up with that text exchange in the attachments - something about dismissing someone from a suit? And, I could be wrong, but the Culleys and the Watkins are either old family friends or distant cousins, I can't remember. Sounds like family feud gone public.
time to move to Reunion or Lost Rabbit.
Mary & Vaughn Watkins are Lew Culley's aunt and uncle. FYI.
Kingfish, see how many board members and who holds the most offices. 1 chairman, 1 vice-chairman and "you know who, the convict" holds the secretary AND treasury position. SHE rules the roost! Buzzard needs to take flight.
Yes, jet skiing is allowed. Under 12 requires an adult present. It's in the Property Owner's Association rules.
Plus, if the lake is privately owned, and the owner's relatives are riding, why does the woman think she has any say-so over this?
Culley Lake appears to be a fairly small lake, and few jet skis running around on it could be fairly annoying and dangerous. By no means am I defending the actions of that crazy old lady, but as other have already stated, there's go to be more to the story. I live in a subdivision with some asshole neighbors and an overzealous HOA president, so I can kind of relate. I can assure you that I've lived in my last neighborhood.
I hate HOA,s but am on the board in my neighborhood. Unfortunately no matter the price of homes without reasonable regs you will have cars on blocks, 2 foot high yards and cars and boats lining both sides of the street devaluing your home and everyone else’s. Reasonable boards and reps can be helpful for everyone. Unreasonable can be hell for everyone.
I don’t see a problem in the photos as it’s not unlawful on public places but casting fish hooks at kids or adults is certainly over the edge.
How about some common sense on everyone’s part.
"@12:06 And that’s why your kids will end up in prison and as drug addled crackheads, because you probably let the little criminals get away with murder."
@12:42, at least they'll know how to spell.
They will be crackheads and end up in prison because I grew up in the outdoors, fishing and running a boat in the dark. You're right, I should have just stayed home playing video games....
A lake like that should have a maximum boat speed or horsepower. If the boys were riding around causing problems that's the parents fault. Also think about the bank erosion by boats speeding around. I say what do the covenants say and if you don't like it change the rules.
By the way covenants and Ho rules are there to protect you, what if your neighbor wants to build a metal shop? Get the point!
@3:08 Good point. But the judge saw a problem and found the lady guilty. When there is money, pride and prejudice involved, common sense goes out the window. Bet a hundred bucks the old crazy woman is mad cause her little kingdom is crumbling. Resorting to the behavior of that lady, described in words and photos.....Lunatic! I also noticed talk of another lawsuit! Involving same woman? What the hell?
Now if there was a lit up purple bird on that jet ski, we would have a problem.
If you bothered to look at the rest of the article and the pics, you would know why the youth were scared. That couple looks like 10,000 other couples that have moved to Madison over the last 20 years. They don't want their neighborhood going the same direction as their last neighborhood in south Jackson and they take matters I their own hands.
My guess...this subdivision has A LOT bigger problems than jet skis. Lawsuits, family feud, crazy old woman arrested and found guilty of assault? The story behind this has got to be bigger than a jet ski. Much less 11 year olds.
Other lawsuits??? Trying to make a deal to drop charges? Kingfish, you can’t make this up! Involves a HOA too boot! We want more!
People. HOA officer CONVICTED of ASSAULT of a CHILD! A judge head all the evidence. GUILTY! The conversation should start there!
When fishing poles are outlawed, only crazy HOA outlaws will have them.
I live in a neighborhood with an HOA. I honestly don't see the problem and here is why:
If the HOA tells me I have an issue that violates the covenants and they are correct, then I remedy the situation. I know that I bought a lot in the neighborhood and the deed restrictions say that it is subject to the restrictive covenants. So I contractually agreed to follow the covenants. Being a man of my word, I remedy the problem because I should follow rules that I agreed to follow.
If the HOA tells me I have an issue that violates the covenants and they are not correct, then I simply tell them that I will not change what I am doing because it is not against the covenants. Case closed.
So to summarize, I should follow all covenants, and the HOA can't enforce things that aren't in the covenants.
Sounds much nicer than the HOA where I live.
One member spends him time spraying Roundup all over the place.
So far 5 of his neighbors have died from cancer.
That doesn't even slow down his spraying.
No response that I've seen mentions this, but if the info is correct, the kid the woman tried to hook (again, stupid and dangerous) is the son of the owners of the lake. That does not mean, a) that he has a right to endanger anyone, b) that he has a right to act any way and/or at any time he wishes to neighboring property owners and their property (if in fact he did so), c) that it is good parenting for his parents to condone any bad behavior toward neighbors or to allow him to endanger anyone, but it does mean that with the above in mind, his riding a jetski on the lake his parents - AHEM the owners of the lake - gave him permission to ride it on is none of anyone else's business.
If someone tried to hook one of my children (or anyone else) while either were riding a jetski (or anything else, even walking), rest assured the law would be called immediately and charges filed. If either were riding reasonably, with my permission, and on my lake, "shitstorm" would be among history's great understatements. On the other hand, if either of mine were splashing older folks who clearly did not want to be splashed or otherwise acting like little assholes, the jetski season would be over before "But Da-a-a-ad!" came from their mouths. A second time would be the end of the jetskiing until they bought their own lake and jetskis.
Yet another reason I would never live in Madison County.
@6:05 The child she tried to hook is not the child of the owner of the lake. (Although she harasses the owners child too.) He lives in the neighborhood. Boats, skiing, and jet skis ARE allowed. This isn’t a convenant issue. As someone pointed out, a judge heard BOTH sides and found HER guilty.
Child involved is a good kid. That is his great aunt with the fish hooks. I’m friends with the parents and know his character. Bottom line is-jet skiing does not violate covenants because the Culley’s own the lake. It is Culley property. There’s plenty other misdeeds by this board. I hope Kingfish will do more reporting.
One member spends him time spraying Roundup all over the place.
So far 5 of his neighbors have died from cancer.
Association is not causation.
When the kids ride, the old couple is not on their pier! They only come out AFTER the kids start riding. So to say the kids are harassing these people is just completely false. These are good, well-parented kids. (One is an honor- roll student and was given the top award last year in the entire grade. The award is based on academics, leadership, citizenship, and willingness to help others.) Adult bullies are real and the parents did what they should’ve done. Let the police handle it!
This woman is reckless for casting a fishhook at a child. There's no need to try and harm an 11-year-old. I sold my house in an HOA and it was one of the best decisions I've ever made. The whole board was run by rednecks who let their kids run around terrorizing the neighborhood and didn't want anyone else to say anything about it. I never resorted to trying to harm one of their children, however.
Not long after I moved, the weather started to get warmer and one of the kids took his parents' keys to a 4 wheeler and lost control. Fortunately, the child was not seriously hurt. I am just glad we were long gone, as this kid could have easily crashed into one of us walking in the neighborhood or working in our yard. HOAs can be great but when people forget to make the safety of the neighborhood a top priority, you end up with stories like this.
The crux of this ridiculousness is that some whacked-out child worshiping boor would tie up the police and and the court to press charges over something like this!
September 5, 2018 at 6:39 PM wrote:
"The child she tried to hook is not the child of the owner of the lake."
Ah, OK. I guess where there is one 11 year-old boy with a lake and a jetski, it won't be hard to find several more, so I shouldn't have assumed they were the same 11 year-old boy. Either way, I don't see how a judge could find an adult of "mature years" who admitted to or was proved to have cast a fishhook at a child on a jetski (even one acting inappropriately) anything other than guilty. I wonder if she realizes just how life-altering it could and almost certainly would have been for numerous people if she had actually gotten very unlucky and hooked the boy or the jetski? If I had been the judge, she'd have spent at least 30 days in jail if she admitted her guilt and at least 90 if she forced a trial and the prosecutor proved it up (and that is if I'd shot a 70 with a hole-in-one and come home so giddy it got my wife frisky the day before).
@6:25 PM, so true, because Jacktown bullets hurt less than a fishing hook or a jetski's wake.
If you are jet skiing within casting distance of a dock fisherman, you are being rude and obnoxious and very possibly dangerous.
I don't know anything about this situation but I have seen jet skiers do that crap to people. I assume they were drunk, or showing off, or both, but trying to be cute and spray someone with a jet ski is a good way to get someone hurt. It's one of the reasons I won't fish at the reservoir on the weekend in the summer time anymore.
Parents need to tell the kids to ride on the other side of the lake when they see granny dunking a cricket. Granny should have called the parents instead of what she did.
Stupidity all around...
A JUDGE heard all the evidence and testimony. HOA lady was found guilty. And sentenced. That’s the only fact that needs to be commented on. Period. Looney toon that crossed the line. Needs to calm tf down and back tf off. Let sane people run the neighborhood.
My family has lived across the street from the Watkins for four years, and they've never been anything but great to us and our boys. Show a little grace.
@7:42 AGAIN- the old lady isn’t outside until the kids start jet-skiing. She’s NOT fishing. She was casting an UNBAITED hook at the kids. The kids are 11 so they aren’t drunk and they aren’t spraying her. She throws sticks and hooks at them when they ride. They don’t get that close to her or her pier. Why would they - it’s shallow?? People sure are trying really hard to make up stuff to make the kids sound like the problem. The Judge said SHE was the problem. Btw... if someone is in a boat fishing, the kids don’t even ride. They were taught right. It’s s shame 11 yr olds know how to act and an 79 yr old doesn’t. Just Bc she’s old and senile doesn’t give her the right to try to harm a child.
@8:03. Well now, that narrows down who you are!!! If I lived there, no doubt I would know who you side with. Lol
It takes a village..........
Who is the president and the other people on this HOA or does it just consist of this one person?
We lived in this neighborhood from 2001 to 2011 and loved having the lake to use for fishing and boating and jet skiing. A few years in, however, this woman began to make life miserable for people who wanted to use the lake. It’s owned by the Culleys but that never stopped her. She ruled the neighborhood and the NTV board. She was awful then and still is apparently.
Lol @6:25
I guess that’s something you don’t have to worry about, considering there are no lakes in Jackson. Enjoy your crime filled swamp.
"The crux of this ridiculousness is that some whacked-out child worshiping boor would tie up the police and and the court to press charges over something like this!"
The judge found her guilty, not the boy. Trial's over. You can appeal, but we'd rather you just hut up about it. You lost.
This is so sad. It is like a shark feeding frenzy -
As I sit here and read some of these posts, I am wondering if you had to sign your name, if these posts would be as vicious in nature. It is easy to hide behind anonymous and say anything you want to say. Mary Watkins is a strong and intelligent woman. This case has been appealed and I pray to God that in this second trial the truth will prevail. Life has rules - The world has rules - The HOA has to follow the covenants. This makes the subdivision move forward as to the wishes of the developer. There is more to the story - also two sides to this story. BTW - I am 81 and am for sure not crazy - Just a concerned resident who wants to have the best neighborhood that it can possibly be.
I would have taught the tax on lottery tickets would have generated more comments than this Lil neighborhood squabble.
I live in Northbay which is right by NTV and from what I've heard, their HOA has used over $80,000 of the property owners' money to fund lawsuits concerning Culley Lake without their prior knowledge or consent. Property owners would rather their money be spent improving the neighborhood. Have you seen their St. Augustine entrance? It's WAY outdated. I have to pass it twice a day and can't imagine ours looking like that!
12:47 - It really matters not that we all should be glad you weren't the judge. You're desire to meet out your brand of idiotic justice, notwithstanding, the lake is said to be private and owned by the father of the kid on the vessel. So, you're notion of what rules and justice should apply are irrelevant.
Regardless of what the kid did, when and where and what time he was on his own lake, someone who casts a tethered hook at someone else should be in jail. It could have cost the kid an eye or worse. This woman, from reading the posts above, is a damned nut case.
Has nobody in that hood got the balls to tell her to 'Kiss My Ass!'?
7:24: Boor? Snowflake dolt might be an even better moniker.
@Betty Anne Gill. Which case is appealed? Someone said there are several lawsuits going on.
You’re right - there are rules ... called laws. Throwing hooks and sticks at kids trying to harm them is against the law. You can take up for your crazy friend all you want - but she is trying to hurt a child. WHO DOES THAT? If she has a problem with those parents, confront THEM. Trying to harm a child is NEVER ok and taking up for someone who does says a lot about you!!
I just wonder what her fellow board members are thinking?
I am a 74 year old that moved my wife away from this neighborhood due to this chaos. The lady above is one of the misled “sweethearts” that helps keep this board propped up. The neighborhood is or used to be beautiful, but the HOA has spent all the funds on fighting for something that is not theirs while letting everything else fall apart. What has been single handedly done has wronged every homeowner that still lives there and I am cheering from the sidelines that this helps every single one of you move forward! It is about time!
@7:16 - If you go against her - she makes things VERY hard for that homeowner. (She won’t approve work or a remodel or anything you may need). Most of the people haven’t paid dues in years. If you’re “with her” she lets that slide. If not, you get fined extra. (I’ve heard some people owe $1500 for 4 years of back fines of not paying $50 a year dues.). If you are “with her” you can let your garage look like a hoarder, let your yard look like crap. She won’t bother you. She’s so worried about ruling a lake she’s let the rest of the neighborhood go to shit. She’s not even enforcing the real covenants that are designed to keep the neighborhood nice.
Vote her off you say??? Well guess who’s in charge of that?! Some people are allowed to mail in votes. No one has a clue who voted or what the true votes are!!
She’s using the neighborhood dues (over 100K - she’s told the residents it only cost 30K) to get ownership of a lake she doesn’t own and will NEVER own. You wanna see the financials?? Good luck ... She won’t show them. I wonder how much this last lawsuit (her assaulting a child) is costing the neighborhood. She lost but is appealing it - she doesn’t care about how much it’s gonna cost.
She keeps fighting losing battles with other people money. Did I mention she’s not winning ANY of those lawsuits?? She keeps appealing them though.
It is not who votes that matters. The one who counts the votes matters.
the sole purpose of a HOA is to protect and enhance property values and to see that the property is subjected to its highest and best use. this is the sort of thing that happens when an HOA gets a board president who's priorities are not with protecting and enhancing property values. im a resident owner of a condo at the reservoir. a non-resident owner out here, who rented his property, somehow got himself made president of our HOA board. once again, a basic fundamental of property ownership is the enhancement of property values. thats what all resident home owners want. they want to eventually be able to sell their homes for alot more than they paid for them. in stark contrast, anyone who is not a resident property owner and rents his property to the first group of vagabonds who come along , is not interested in long term property appreciation, they are only interested in a rent check every 30 days. in other words their interests conflict with that of resident property owners. we eventually got this bum thrown out, but remember folks, before buying property which is governed by and HOA, check to see if the HOA BOARD PRESIDENT has the same interests as you, which is long term property appreciation, and not a rent check.
@8:53 why do the residents allow such to happen?
@8:53 Am I thinking correctly that a family owns this lake that isn't technically part of the neighborhood, rather the neighborhood backs up to it and the HOA(She) thinks its the neighborhood lake?
One thing for sure, ya'll need some people with some stones in that neighborhood to tell that old bitty to pound sand. I'd be dammed if she told me what I could or couldn't do to my house so long as it wasn't something way out of line.
@10:16. Exactly! If there are several lawsuits and a family feud, as suggested in these comments, then the priorities of the HOA officers and their interest in protecting and enhancing property values must be questioned. Seems like its all about the lake. The lake aint going anywhere. The property values are....going DOWN. Not because of the lake, IN SPITE of the Lake!
@8:32. -Since SHE controls the vote and who gets on the board - she usually gets the soft types to be on the board. She does favors for the people “with her” and overlooks things they do or things they should do. Same thing with the people on the board. Again ... she likes the weak types that aren’t going to confront her. So that’s the types ALWAYS on the board.
@10:22 i'm a homeowner in ntv, fear of being harassed by the board and sued. votes are rigged and rarely have annual meetings to even get to vote.
@10:50. Yes. You are correct. The lake isn’t the neighborhood lake like it is in other neighborhoods. A family owns it. When they sold the lots around the lake and in the neighborhood, the deeds say they can USE the lake though. The family that owns the lake WANTS the homeowners to use and enjoy the lake - just as it was intended. One person doesn’t want kids out there riding a jet ski or skiing. That’s fine. She doesn’t have to like it. She can move. She can could a sea-wall if she’s worried about erosion. Lots of options for her. EXCEPT making rules in a lake SHE DOES NOT OWN. People have been skiing on that lake for over 50 years!!! Now because SHE doesn’t like it - SHE tried to make a rule banning skiing and jet skis. She can’t do that to property that’s not hers. A judge agreed.
Guess what-you can't use homeowners fees to defend yourself in a lawsuit where you did an intentional act such as casting a lure at a boater. That's like saying I deliberately shot the neighbors dog but I want the homeowners assn. to defend me. The homeowners assn. should only be responsible for acts of the association not a member who takes it upon themselves to act independently without board authority.
I would move to have a meeting and remove her from the board. Any money spent should be returned.
There is obviously reasons that some board members won't budge!
I mean, who would want to serve on a board with her?
Anyone calling the President to get his/her comment?
@11:37- they’ve tried. No one wants her on the board except a few that don’t have a clue what she’s REALLY doing and the ones she does favors for. The new meeting (that she’s in charge of) to elect new officers was suppose to be in August. Guess what hasn’t happened yet. Yep... no meeting nor is there one scheduled.
@12:16. As stated before, she only allows the weak on the board. That way she controls them. They are too soft to fight her.
It is the kid's fault! And the parent's! They ought to no better than to ride by a pier with a crazy woman holding a fishing rod and lure with hooks! They were just asking to be hurt. Where is the decency in this world? Kids can't be trusted. We must punish them for their parent's behavior! Hail to the persecuted elderly! Stay strong.
So you sound like you KNOW that she was for sure out there before the kid started riding on the jet ski?!
Not much you can do when she comes out EVERYTIME someone rides a jet ski!
8:53, how have over $100k of neighborhood dues been spent if the dues are $50 per year?
Regardless, a little advice if you want the financials. The Natchez Trace Village Property Owners Association Inc. is a nonprofit registered with the Mississippi Secretary of States Office.
https://corp.sos.ms.gov/corp/portal/c/page/corpbusinessidsearch/portal.aspx#clear=1
Per Mississippi's Nonprofit Corporations Act, members have the right to inspect and copy records, including financial records. MS Code § 79-11-287 (2013).
https://law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2013/title-79/chapter-11/mississippi-nonprofit-corporation-act/section-79-11-285/
If those records aren't provided as the law requires, then it can be taken to Madison County Chancery Court where the court can order it. MS Code § 79-11-289 (2013)
https://law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2013/title-79/chapter-11/mississippi-nonprofit-corporation-act/section-79-11-289/
I have a co-worker who lives there. We visited for a BBQ and he explained that the lake isn't part of his neighborhood, but the Culley family are very kind to share the lake. I think they allow them to fish on it, and even keep some fish of a certain size.he is,
HOA officers often get a case of the "power gone wild" syndrome. Just read the whole thing. Lake is not owned by HOA. Lady was WAY over the line, to say the least, regardless of how anyone feels personally about jet skis. "Other lawsuits"? Involving this crazy HOA person and the owner of the lake? Over who has right to make rules on the lake? Using HOA money to sue? Hey crazy lady, I got some advice for you, go back to your hole and don't come back out! The OWNER of the lake is the ONLY one that has any right to say what is and isn't done on their lake. PERIOD. Any normal person should understand this. And there are people taking up for this nut job?
In response to the person who asked how $100,000 could be spent on lawsuits when the dues are only $50?
Dues were $50 until 2006 when they went up to $150 to make necessary repairs to the lake per the boards request. Board said they received the required 2/3 votes to change the covenant but the change along with those 2/3 signatures was not recorded at the Chancery Court Land Records as required by the covenants. Also the lake repairs were never made.
How do you 'repair' a lake?
It’s a 26 acre recreational lake if I’m not mistaken. Half of the homes surrounding the lake have dilapidated, liability riden piers. This includes the lady casting the fishing hook. NTV is a beautiful neighborhood inhabited by a bunch of nursing home bound residents. They simply want to look at the lake and live out their final days. This has went from “Get of my yard” to “Stay off my lake”! It’s sad but these older residents are passing quickly and the youth are breathing fresh air into the neighborhood. It’s highly appealing to most to be able to live on a lake (in Madison city limits) with access to fishing and water sports without having to spend $500 - $750k. It’s sound as though it’s time to disband the HOA and start over. Mary may not be the standing president but she controls the HOA. Al Wright is the acting president of that HOA but has no control. Mary has kept a tight grip on that HOA (as treasurer) with no accounting accountability. Wouldn’t wanna take away someone’s bread and butter would they? It’s obvious that funds have been misappropriated throughout the years in this neighborhood. The younger generation of the neighborhood have banded together to do the job of the HOA, for their lack there of.
Any update on being able to see exactly how much and to whom money is going to? I know specific financials were requested multiple times but never provided. Why wouldn’t an HOA board want to be completely transparent?
Why would the neighborhood repair a lake that belongs to someone else? Sounds like the owner just being nice and letting folks use it may be a little misleading, is he letting folks use it as long as the neighborhood pays to keep it up? Then that's a little different.
As to why a board might not want to be transparent, there could be mismanagement of funds obviously or they could just be a-holes. Just follow the formal process for requesting and you will find out.
Anonymous said...
How do you 'repair' a lake?
September 6, 2018 at 10:52 PM
It depends on what needs repairing.
10;16am is so correct in his assessment of a HOA board. BEFORE you go out and plop down your hard earned money on a piece of real estate run by a HOA or condominium board, get a feel for the kind of people on the board and how they operate. many times you will find a huge collection of freaks , frauds, fools, and failures that have no idea of the basic fundamentals of property ownership and how to manage real property for its highest and best use. many boards will have members WHO DONT EVEN LIVE IN THE NEGHIBOORHOOD , and run rental businness whereby they rent their property to the first bunch of ghetto vagabonds and illegal aliens who come along . such rentals will destroy the property values of the owner occupied homes and further lending institutions will not want to loan money on homes in that neiboorhood citing the ratio of renters to resident homeowners is too high. renters do not have a dime invested in the property and it shows. they bring along their junk vehicles, illegal drug use, litter, tons of assorted junk they pile on the balconies, porches and in the driveways, their junk boats and trailers, their junk RVs and everything else a redneck has to have. they even set up bedrooms in the garages. they literally attempt to turn it into a trailer park. most HOA s that are full of whimps will not do anything about the problem because they are scared of "hurting someones feelings" or "getting sued". moral of story , if you want to destroy your property values just bring in a bunch of ghetto renters.
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theres a term called BLOCK BUSTING that every would be home owner should be aware of and KNOW ABOUT. blockbusters are people in the RESIDENTIAL home rental business. also known as slum lords. they buy properties in nice neiborhoods and the proceed to move vagabond renters into the neighborhood in an effort to destroy property values. when those property values do drop , the resident home home owners panic and decide to get out while the can. but by then its too late. at that point, out come the for sale signs, and then those same rental property businesses, a/k/a slumlords,who brought in the renters in the first place, will be right there making low ball offers to the panicked sellers. this process can literally turn formerly nice neighborhoods and condominium homes into glorified apartment complexes. before you pay out the ass for a residential home in a neighborhood or a condo complex , make sure BLOCKBUSTING is not going on in the area you are interested in. the only way to prevent blockbusting is to have prohibitions on renters from the very beginning.
She’s not a slum lord... just a senile woman acting like a toddler because she didn’t get her way and lost a lawsuit.
Someone asked why repair the lake if HOA doesn’t own?
Dues were used to maintain for 40 years and all was fine. When kids inherited the property one simply asked to come to a board meeting and talk about a maintenance agreement but one board member wouldn’t allow. $100,000 later here we are with yet another appealed lawsuit. See court records if interested.
This all could have been settled years ago and for free!
BTW- lake owners want us to enjoy the lake regardless if HOA maintains it or not. It hasn’t been maintained by HOA in years but our dues haven’t been reduced!
8:43 - Please give two examples of 'repairing a lake'.
Not 843, but as the oenergy of a couple of small lakes, I'll take a shot. 1) rebuild or reinforce the spillway; 2) dam maintenance (could result from beaver burrowing, tree roots or erosion); installation or repair to overflow piping; 3) draining for fish population control with shoreline maintenance while lowered; ...... need I go on?
Meanwhile, a little further up the road in central Madison County, there are multiple HOAs run by freaks and nut-cases who think their reason for being on the planet is to control the lives of others. They never made cheerleader or the football team or got to be on the principal's 'hall monitor' list and rarely, if ever, had a Friday night date....so now they feel complete.
They're in charge of something now. And you damned well better mind your Petunias, run the driveway-edger regularly, hide that trailer and clean out last season's bird nest.
And if you have fishing gear (with or without hooks), they'd better be inside the storage room, not exposed in the Garage.
All the board has to do is just to do the right thing. The last post is the exact truth. There are 3 individuals on the board who have never done ANYTHING except be miserable human beings. They won't have an audit, and they have spent over $100,000.00 of our property dues on lawsuits against the property owners. They should be held responsible and made to repay these funds. Part of the last judgement against Mary Watkins was that she was to attend anger management classes. These charges alone should be enough to remove her from the board. The homeowners voted to have another meeting this summer as three board members terms were up. Now the board will not schedule this meeting. The two board members supporting Mary Watkins are Al Wright and Ray Phelps,
This is extremely bothersome. A woman in her very advanced years believes she can threaten / harm children or people in general and get away with it. Why is she still representing a neighborhood? I can only assume the other members of that HOA support her actions? They should all be in jail. What is wrong with people ?
And the people on here asking for / giving examples of how to repair a lake... I’m wondering if anyone can give examples of the different types of mental help this woman can receive and also the other board members. They all need help because it sounds like they have lost their minds by taking matters into their own hands. No one should be subjected to behavior such as this. Especially a CHILD.
This woman must live a really sad life. I feel sorry for her own family and wonder why someone didn’t step in before it got to this point ? Her family needs help too. If she will throw a hook, what else will she do ?
Same board member has recently made a rule that we can’t cut trees in our own yard unless they are dead. Not long after everyone received the letter (signed at Al Wright) she had trees cut from her own property. Some say she had them cut because they were dead
but that’s not what was seen!
Mary Watkins has served on the NTV HOA Board since 1978. Some years she held two positions - Treasurer/Secretary. She has now been the Treasurer since 2007!
3:55 - Why would anyone want to serve on a homeowners board for that long (40 years... what???)? Why ?
Control!
The same three board members have served for years and years. The same three vote on things no matter who else serves on the board so they control it! One board member has said "They don't want change". I encourage anyone to ride through our neighborhood and say we don't need change! Our entrances have not been updated since 2004 and our property values have declined. A large group of property owners have asked for improvements to be made but are shot down by the same three board members time and time again. What HOA board would tell their property owners by mail that they can't even ATTEND their annual meeting if not current on dues and in good standing with the board? Ever heard of such? This is not in our covenants nor the bylaws. Proxy votes must be mailed to the Treasurer/Secretary and she calls those who gave their proxy to people she does not like and tries to intimidate them. They have altered our covenants without our votes and not recorded them at the Chancery Clerk Land Rolls. Covenants were issued when individual lots were sold instead of by plat for most of NTV therefore, new owners don't know any different as the board continues to print the altered covenants in their directories. Now they want everyone to believe the lake owners don't want people to use the lake! These property owners have spent a lot of money of their own to fight for what has been theirs all along.
Lake owners want each and every one of us to use the lake just as our covenants give us the right to!
It's pure hatred for the board to try to make people believe any different! I don't know how these three sleep at night!
Ok, since former neighbors are chiming in, I’ll throw my 2 cents worth in...my husband grew up in the village. I think his family built the 4th or 5th house there. Not only did he swim and ski in the 50 acre lake, he swam his horse across it. The Village, at that time was very family oriented. When we decided to build our home, we bought a lot in NTV. We ran into a property line issue with the long standing Home next to us. While deathly ill, Lewis Culley deeded us a pie shaped piece of land to make it possible for us to build our home. When we moved in we bought a pontoon boat and parked it in the lake right in our back yard. That’s why we bought a lot on the lake! My kids loved playing and riding in the lake. Isn’t that why folks buy lake front property? You know, to enjoy the lake. It’s 50 acres, people. Plenty big to boat and water bike in. If the board would use all that court money to remove the silting and have property owners construct seawalls, it would be even better. Such a waste of homeowners money. That’s all, I’m done.
This appeal will be heard Tuesday February 19th. 1pm in Canton.
She does so much more than attack kids on jet skis. My teen daughters ride a golf cart in the neighborhood and she has jumped in her car to follow and harass them. She will drive up to the bumper of the golf cart quickly then slow down so she can speed up and do it again. This is vicious and crazy. She has every right to call police or talk to parents if she believes kids are doing something wrong. She does not have the right to threaten and harass kids. Risking serious injury to these kids every time she goes off the deep end. And no my girls do not ride the golf cart anymore. Also as to the jet skiing all but one of them are kid jet skis. If you’ve seen a kids electric dirt bike or scooter they are similar. They have a top speed of 16 mph and are not loud because they don’t have gas powered engines.
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