A Tennessee woman is suing her neighbor after she returned home from work to find a 40ft trench through her yard.
Linda Riddle, from Knoxville, accused her neighbor of trespassing on her property with an unlicensed plumber while she was not home to dig the three-and-a-half foot deep hole across the length of her backyard.
‘I just want my backyard fixed,’ she told 6 News. ‘I want it so I can use it for my enjoyment.’
Riddle’s neighbor argued that she agreed to the trench after the clay pipes for his property broke. Without access through her property, he had no other way to connect to the city’s sewer system.
But Riddle insists she only gave permission for the use of space behind her yard, not the massive hole dug straight through the middle.
She also alleges in her lawsuit the work was done without a permit or by a licensed plumber.
According to the publication, her own connection to the sewer was severed in the process of works being carried out.
The City of Knoxville issued a stop work order after they were alerted to the situation in mid-February 2024. According to the city, the plumber who did the initial work was unlicensed.
Linda Riddle, from Knoxville, accused her neighbor of trespassing on her property with an unlicensed plumber while she was not home to dig the three-and-a-half foot deep hole across the length of her backyard
Now, she’s stuck with the ditch in her backyard and is concerned about the risk it poses to passersby
Riddle launched legal proceedings against her neighbor in September 2024, which remains ongoing.
She is seeking compensation for the damages and costs incurred, and earlier declined a settlement from her neighbor’s attorney which she said did not adequately cover her expenses.
Now, she’s stuck with the ditch in her backyard and is concerned about the risk it poses to passersby.
‘You want to make sure nobody is walking out on here,’ her attorney Bennett Hirschhhorn said.
She is maintaining a bright orange fence around the trench to avoid causing injury to anybody in the area.