A 93-year-old woman who has been a resident of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, for more than 30 years is currently embroiled in a legal fight against a land development company seeking to build a residential development next to her family land.
In February, the Georgia-based land development company Bailey Point Investment filed a lawsuit against Josephine Wright, alleging that three of her items – a satellite dish, a shed and a corner of her screened-in porch – were encroaching upon the developer’s land and thus hindering the planned construction of 147 homes.
Tracey Love Graves, Wright’s granddaughter, told CNN the 1.8-acre land has been in Wright’s family for over 30 years. The land had originally belonged to her husband’s family for over 100 years. Following his death in 1998, it was passed onto Wright.
The lawsuit from Bailey Point Investment followed after Wright refused an initial offer of $39,000 from the company to buy her land. According to the Post and Courier which reviewed the lawsuit, Bailey Point Investment accuses Wright’s encroachments of having “significantly delayed and hindered” the planned 29-acre neighborhood at the expense of the company’s money and time.
It also accuses Wright of being “stubbornly litigious” and seeks compensation for current and future damages as a result of the encroachment, the outlet reports. According to a GoFundMe page set up by Wright’s family, the lawsuit also accuses Wright of not being the legal heir to the property.
“I want this to stay in the family,” Wright told the Island Packet in May, adding that she was unaware of the development starting to take place until she one day woke up and discovered the surrounding forest land being demolished.
Speaking to the Post and Courier, Wright’s attorney, Roberts Vaux, said that Bailey Point Investment has since launched a “consistent and constant barrage of tactics of intimidation” including the lawsuit against Wright, who has filed a counterclaim in response.
Wright’s granddaughter said other acts of intimidation included flattening car tires and putting a venomous snake near a bedroom window, the outlet reports.
The counterclaim also accuses Bailey Point Investment of “trashing her property, going onto her property cutting brush and shrubs, littering, causing dirt and debris to cover her automobile, house and contents”.
Since reports of Wright’s legal battle emerged in spring, a number of celebrities have come to Wright’s defense. The NBA star Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks has contributed $40,000 to Wright’s legal fund, which has in total raised more than $200,000 from more than 3,700 donations across the country so far.
The Hollywood writer and director Tyler Perry has also weighed in on Wright’s case on Instagram, writing: “Ms. Wright, please tell where to show up and what you need to help you fight.”
The rapper Meek Mill, who earlier this year vowed to fight antisemitism following a visit to Auschwitz, replied to Perry’s post, saying: “Corporate bullying at its finest … this is super hero status!”
