Zagustin ordered to move out, pay up
By Jimmy Chai
Daily Forty-Niner
WESTMINSTER -- A
Superior Court judge Wednesday ordered Cal State Long Beach professor Elena
Zagustin to vacate what used to be her Huntington Beach home and pay $3,057.73
in statutory and compensatory damages.
Zagustin was given
seven days to move out of her home, which was auctioned off for $301,500
two months ago, said Andrew Edward Smyth, Zagustinís attorney.
"I don't know if
I'm moving out," said Zagustin, who said she feels her neighbors are ganging
up on her. Zagustin said she will not appeal.
Randal Durham and
Rudy Silva, the current owners of the home, filed a lawsuit against Zagustin
for failure to leave the premises after its sale.
The sale of the home,
where city inspectors testified they found trash and debris piled five
feet high, was ordered by a Superior Court judge to pay more than $300,000
in compensatory damages awarded to many of Zagustinís neighbors during
seven years of civil litigation.
However, after the
sale, Zagustin refused to move.
"We posted a three-day
notice on the front door of the house," Durham said in court. "And we mailed
in a proof of service that the notice was posted."
Zagustin said in
court that the notice was thrown on her front yard.
The $3,057.73, which
includes the rental payment for the 48 days she has stayed in the home
and the cost to serve the "hard to find" Zagustin, should not be paid because
the usual notice for eviction is 30 days, Smyth said.
"[The owners] had
a bonafied purchase, and they have a good title from the marshal's office,î
Smyth said.
"She was given a
bargaining deal, but she decided not to take it," Smyth said.
The deal would have
saved Zagustin $2,500, Smyth said.
Durham, who attended
the hearing, was satisfied with the outcome. But, he said, he does not
know what will happen in the next couple of days.
Durham admitted he
was not aware of the controversy surrounding the house until the day of
the auction.
"I noticed reporters
at the auction, and someone told me [what was going on]," Durham said.
But Durham, who has not yet been inside the house, still placed a bid and
submitted the highest offer.
"I'll give the house
no special treatment," said Durham, who represents an investors group.
"[We] want to fix it up for resale."
"Durham is a part
of the neighbors," Zagustin said. "They are trying to harass me."
"This would have
been a good case for the Supreme Court, but it's too late to appeal," Smyth
said. ìIf you don't like your neighbors, weíll show up with a [law] suit
... that is unfair." |
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