why is imenent domain important??

Answer 1

The original concept was good when it was used for very necessary things - roads or railroads, to name two examples which come to mind - but now it has become simply a way to take land from one person to use it for another - like in Detroit where a company is trying to take land from homeowners to build a shopping center

Answer 2

It's very important. Eminent domain is the power the government can use to seize private property. Now, the original intent of the law was more oriented towards taking land for the public good. For instance, a county can take your property for a school, road, or some other type of public facility. Of course, you are supposed to be "fairly" compensated for that land.

The problem arises when governments use the power of ED (not to be confused with the other ED) to give land to private developers. For instance, developers in many areas have worked with city/county governments. They may want to build a store, condos, offices, etc; the county wanted to improve land they felt was blighted and increase the tax base of the county. The county uses ED to evict landowners (paying them "fairly") and then turns around and sells the property to the developer. Never mind the fact that the land/home owners didn't want to sell. Kelo v. New London is a great read.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelo_v._New_London

Luckily, many in talk radio made a stink about this and the mainstream media picked up the case. Many states now have laws making it very difficult for local municipalities to do this.

Here's a great website for you.

http://www.castlecoalition.org/

Answer 3

Well basically its the opposite of anything that you would think that we would agree with... it basically says that what ever you own is really not yours.. if the city votes that a major motel is not going to build in your community because your house is in the way, they can just TAKE your home for the better of the whole... i.e. more jobs for the community to take your home from you. So wahla... you lose your home...period. No ands ifs or but... Now I happen to know that a series of movies were put out back in the eighties about just such stuff... but no one in their right mind thought this would have been a law just a mere 15 years later ... back then they were concerned with big businesses putting homeowners under duress to get them to sell them their houses... in particular there was this one movie (after school special or lifetime movie special) where this poor little old lady was in a big city like new york or somewhere had a home (little frame house) that she lived in that she was born in and throughout the years big buildings were built all around her until, literally 20 feet on all sides of her home were big buildings (skyscrapers)... and a building owner wanted her house and was bullying her making lots of noise and all kinds of stuff, and she couldn't prove it, but when she finally did... the city stepped in and ARRESTED the man... movie over.. Well, who new just a few short years later, the city would be the one to take your home and without having to take you to court...hence eminent domain. I hope this explains it...

As far as roads.... Is a cherry tree you and your family planted 30 years ago worth the road? I think not... build and OVERPASS PEOPLE!

I'm sorry I must interject with yet another comment... Schools and other building can be built within one major structure... hence tall buildings... you don't have to take someone land for anything.

Answer 4

Because there are instances when the goverment needs to build something important and necessary that will benefit a large percentage of the population. Things such as schools, hospitals, highways, etc... In these cases the needs of many outweight those of the few.

Unfortunately our Supreme Court doesn't see it that way. They, lead by Souter, decided recently that imminent domain also applies to instances when a private individual wants your house so that he could use the land for personal gain.

Answer 5

It is Important to guarantee Freedom to have and Keep Property as One of the Pillars of American Freedom. What Justice Souter did, is bordering on Communism and he should be disbarred right along with Clarence Thomas! That's the 1st, 4th and 5th Amendments of the Bill of Rights! They did not pay attention in Political Science Or Civics Class about the Constitution of the United States of America.

Answer 6

It's a very touchy issue because even if you have lived there since the US was created, the government can take the land from you and use it for the "public good" which can have very broad implications and definitions. Yes they have to compensate you, but in a lot of cases the compensation is not what people are looking for. They want to be able to stay where they are without fear of losing their land or home because someone wants to build something different on it.

Answer 7

eminent domain gives the government the right to take your property for what ever use it so chooses. This is why the ranchers where thrown off their land around the white sands missle range in NM back in the '40s. Eminent Domain put into practice. Of course it was for the good of the nation, we developed the Atom bomb. DO you feel protected? lol

Answer 8

It is important because without it I could buy a 1-inch wide strip of land running from Canada to Mexico and charge everyone a fee to cross it.
It should have been used VERY sparingly and with just compensation plus a bonus.
It has now become criminally perverted and it's best current use is as a test of who you want to vote for. If they are for the current use allowed by the court......dump 'em.

Answer 9

It's important to the government because it allows them to take land away from poor people so they can build highways or sell it to Walmart so they can put a store on it.

Answer 10

It's not... It's just a good excuse to be able to take other people's property.