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DEPOSITION OF CRAIG POWERS BY WRITTEN QUESTIONS, Massachusetts Civil Procedure rule 31.
1. State your full name, occupation and official title and residence address.
2. When were you assigned to this case by Chistopher Webb?
3. What information were you given when you were assigned to this case by Christopher Webb?
4. Is it true that you were provided with five complaints that came over the SEECLICKFIX website?
5. How many complaints had you received from neighbors about the property at 172-174 Belmont Street, Malden MA starting in 1900?
6. How many hours and minutes passed between the time of the first SEECLICKFIX complaint and the last SEECLICKFIX complaint?
7. Do you consider the possibility that some people might make crank calls into SEECLICKFIX?
8. What criteria do you use to determine if a complaint is a crank call?
9. Who were the original complainants who made those five complaints on ay 25, 2021 on the ClickSeeFix website?
10. On the SEECLICKFIX ID 9989078 at the bottom of the page under “Timestamp Internal comment” the first entry says “May 25, 2021 01:51 Malden, MA assigned this Issue to Christopher Webb (Director Malden, MA of Public Health.) My question is, “Who is “Malden MA?”
11. By what authority did “Malden, MA” assign “this issue to Christopher Webb”?
12. Did Malden MA work for the City of Malden May 25, 2021?
13. Have you ever attended a meeting of “Problem Properties?”
14. Who wrote the second notation on the SEELICKFIX ID 9989078 dated May 25, 2021 at 07:09 that says “Another person wants this fixed”?
15. Who is “Malden MA”?
16. What is the IP address of Malden MA?
17. Who is “amdello?”
18. What is the IP address of “amdello?”
19. Who is Denise?
20. What is the IP address of “Denise?”
21. Who is “concerned westender?”
22. What is the IP address of “concerned westender?”
23. Who is “madmen?”
24. What is the IP address of “madmen?”
25. Is it the usual procedure when investigating SEECLIICKFIX reports to ask permission from the homeowner to search the premises before you do the search?
26. In the course of your employment as a health inspector, have you ever obtained a search warrant?
27. Did you have any corroborating evidence to support the five anonymous complaints?
28. When you first visited 172 Malden Street did you see the privacy fences installed in the front yard?
29. Walking down the driveway from the sidewalk to the back yard, did you see the privacy fence straight ahead at the back of the yard?
30. When you entered the property and inspected the back yard did you see the privacy fences surrounding the back yard?
31. In the course of your employment as a health inspector, have you been trained to accept anonymous tips as sufficient evidence to present to a court to get a search warrant?
32. Is the reason that you do not get search warrants that you do not have reliable, identifiable complainants to satisfy a judge that there are sufficient grounds to grant a search warrant?
33. Why did you not knock on Mr. Leuchter’s door and tell him there was a complaint before you searched his back yard?
34. For purposes of further investigation, what is the identity of “Malden, MA?”
35. Does the SEECLICKFIX website take anonymous tips?
36. When SEECLICKFIX gets an anonymous tip, does the city official investigate?
37. Based on merely an anonymous tip, is it the habit of the Department of Health to enter the premises of homeowners without their permission or a search warrant or exigent circumstances?
38. Leuchter’s interrogatory no. 1 says: “Identify the 5 collers who called the city of Malden May 25, 2021 referred to in the 3rd page of the Petitioner’s Exhibit 2. Provide their naes, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses.” The Answer states that “The City of Malden does not have the inforation requested. Please note that Exhibit no. 2 is attached to the origial Petition at page 3. This is all the information that the City has regarding this Interrogatory.”
39. Did anyone ask you if you had any information regarding the identity of any of the five anonymous tippers?
40. Do you now or did you ever have any information regarding the identity of any of the five anonymous tippers?
41. Can anyone file a complaint on the SEECLICKFIX website, even a city official or a prankster?
42. If a prankster or a city official filed a false complaint on the SEECLICKFIX website is there any way they could be tracked down and charged with making a false complaint?
43. Did you have any information about foliage, debris and structural weaknesses on Fred Leuchter’s property other than that reported in the five anonymous complaints on May 25, 2021?
44. What, if any, information about foliage, debris and structural weaknesses on Fred Leuchter’s property did you have before you inspected the premises May 25, 2021?
45. Did you read the Petition filed on February 28, 2021 before you certified it under penalty of perjury?
46. On page 2 of the Petition, paragraph 9 and 10 state: “Based upon an inspection made by Craig Powers, Public Health Inspector for the City of Malden on June 7, 2021. The Public Health Inspector found the following violations and gave notice (See Exhibit No. 1) on June 8, 2021 of these violations and needed recitfications to the respondent, Fred A. Leuchter and Teresa Mae Leuchter, which stated in part.......” Do you claim that you sent this letter in Exhibit 1 to Fred Leuchter on June 8th?
47. When you sent the letter, did you include the photographs that are behind the letter in Exhibit 1?
48. Why did you include these photographs in Exhibit 1?
49. Was it your intention to demonstrate to the court the conditions you were ordering Fred Leuchter to correct in your letter to Fred Leuchter of June 8th?
50. What is the date at the top of photograph 1?
51. Did you take the photographs in Exhibit 1 on August 5, 2021?
52. At the bottom of photograph 8 of Exhibit 1, did you write your name and make the notation: “sorry for any misspelling sent from my cell phone?”
53. Did you send these photographs from your cell phone August 5, 2021?
54. Were you trying to make the Court believe that the photographs you took on August 5, 2021 demonstrated the conditions that existed June 7, 2021?
55. Was it a mistake on your part to attach photographs taken on August 5, 2021 with the letter you sent to Fred Leuchter on June 8, 2021?
56. Drawing your attention to Exhibit 2 of the Petition. This
57. Do you agree that the photographs are fuzzy?
58. What kind of camera did you use to take these photographs?
59. What model of camera did you use to take these photographs?
60. Photograph 1 has a notation at the time that says you sent these photographs August 5, 2021 at 1:46 p.m. To whom did you send these photographs?
61. Did you take the photographs August 5, 2021?
62. Count II - Negligence, paragraph 24 states that “The failure of the respondents has caused the petitioner to expend resources to inspect and enforce in the attempt to bring the homeowner into compliance.” Paragraph 25 says, “said failure has diminished the Petitioner’s resources by requiring repetitive public safety visits in responses to complaints about the Premises.” List the dates of the “repetitive public safety visits” and provide the “complaints.” As to each visit, state who accompanied you, both from your own department and from any other department. State the names of the persons who accompanied and the reason for their visit to Mr. Leuchter’s home. State whether or not you entered the back yard and inspected the back yard. Did you have a search warrant? Did you have Mr. Leuchter’s consent to inspect? On what authority did you inspect? States the names, titles, and business or residence addresses of all persons who accompanied you on the “repetitive public safety visits” you refer to in paragraph 25.
63. Exhibit 1, photograph 2. What is the purpose of this photograph?
64. On these repetitive public safety visits were you aware that there were major improvements made to the property documented by your photographs August 5, 2021 as compared with your photographs of June 7, 2021?
65. Do you agree that there are two sets of photographs in Exhibit 2? The first set has fuzzy photographs. Each of the fuzzy photographs is numbered from 1 to 8. These are dated August 5, 2021. The second set of photographs are clear and are unnumbered. The second set of photographs are placed in Exhibit 2 after the first set of photographs but were taken two months before the first set of photographs. The second set of photographs, unnumbered are also undated but, because they show more foliage and debris it is safe to assume that they were taken June 7, 2021, during Craig Powers’ first inspection.
66. Is it true that in your “Order to Correct” dated June 8, 2021 (the first page of Exhibit 1 of the Petition) you state: “A good faith effort to substantially correct violations must be made within the specified time frames listed in the violations section of this order.”
67. Is it true that in your “Complaint” you noted August 5, 2021 you made a handwritten notation that “All violations remain.”
68. Did the order require that Leuchter made a good faith effort to remove vegetation and debris in 14 days?
69. Let us compare the first and the fifth clear photograph with fuzzy photograph 3. Do you see the foliage around the stairs to the second floor in the first clear photograph and the foliage in the yard in front of the porch has been removed by the time fuzzy photograph 3 was taken August 5, 2021?
70. Do you agree that the clear photograph which shows the foliage was taken before the fuzzy photograph that shows no foliage?
71. Did you take the clear photographs when you first inspected the back yard June 7, 2021?
72. Let us contrast 5 and 7 of the fuzzy photographs taken August 5th with the last, or sixth clear photograph taken during Craig Powers’ first inspection of June 7, 2021.
73. Do you agree that there is substantially more debris in the sixth clear photograph taken June 7, 2021 than appears in fuzzy photograph 7?
74. How do you justify reporting that “all violations remain” when it is obvious from your own photographs that a good faith effort had been made by the time you made your second inspection?
75. Why did you take clear photographs of the back yard when it was full of debris and fuzzy photographs of the back yard when it had been substantially clean up?
76. Why did you take fuzzy photographs when you clear had the capability of taking clear photographs?
77. Why did you place the photographs taken earlier in time after the photographs that were taken later in time when you presented your evidence to the court in the petition?
78. Again, addressing your attention to photograph 7 taken August 5th with the last clear photograph taken during your first inspection, do you see different debris, for example the square bucket with a pillow in it, a weed whacker, a shovel and a chair and a large plastic box with a label on it. Do you see any of these items in the last clear photograph taken during your first inspection?
79. Does this not indicate that Leuchter was in the process of clearing out household items over a period of time and not that he was acting in bad faith?
80. Are you aware that the City of Malden only allows a homeowner to dispose of one large item (e.g., the futon) per week and that Leuchter was only allowed by law to dispose of these household goods gradually?
81. Drawing your attention to fuzzy photograph 8, showing aluminum hammock frame, fold up chair frames and other aluminum debris placed in the driveway against Mr. Leuchter’s house.
82. Regarding the fourth clear photograph showing car concrete car tracks leading to a trailer with a step ladder. Are you introducing this photograph to suggest that Leuchter is responsible for the foliage growing in front of the trailer?
83. Would you have introduced the fourth clear photograph if you had known that the property line between Leuchter and his neighbor runs along the middle of the trailer and therefore the foliage was growing from his neighbor’s property and that the trailer belonged to the neighbor?
84. Did you verbally state to Leuchter that “the trailer is part of the clutter, you will have to get rid of it.”
85. Regarding the fourth clear photograph which shows the trailer, please note the large square trash containers. Now view fuzzy photograph 1 which shows the trailer gone and the same trash containers, again filled with trash. Is it not reasonable for a homeowner to put his trash in a trash container in his back yard until he can take it out to the street in a Malden bag?
86. Are you aware that under the rules of the City of Malden, a homeowner may not put out household goods to be picked up by the trash collector except only by breaking up the large garbage, putting it in Malden bags, and putting out once a week.
87. In your job description, is there not a rule that you can only ask for reasonable performance from the residents of the City of Malden?
88. How much household goods do you consider reasonable to expect an 80 year man to break up, bag and carry out to the street once a week when he is disposing of household goods that have accumulated over 60 years of elderly people going through illness and death.
89. Does not the removal of the trailer come under the heading of the “good faith effort to substantially correct violations” demanded in your “Order to Correct” of June 8, 2021?
90. Did you have a search warrant when you first inspected the premises?
91. Was there an emergency that threatened life or injury?
92. Did you take photographs when you first inspected the property?
93. When did you first take photographs of the property?
94. What kind of camera did you use when you first took photographs of the property?
95. How did you produce the pictures which you submitted to the Court in your Petition filed February 28, 2022?
96. Referring to Exhibit “A”, did you get a complaint that you entitled “overgrowth?”
97. On the complaint, you say the problem was “overgrowth.” Do you consider “overgrowth” an emergency that would override your duty to obtain a search warrant?
98. Did you write this notation: “I will try to steer him toward MRA?”
99. When did you first contact nyone in the Redevelopment Authority about Mr. Leuchter?
100. What was it about Mr. Leuchter or his property that made you think he was suitable to steer to MRA?
101. When you decided to steer Mr. Leuchter to the MRA were you aware that the MRA has obtained receivership over many properties belonging to the residents of Malden?
102. Did you tell Mr. Leuchter that the MRA would help him get his yard cleaned and get his porches and the hole in the soffit repaired?
103. Who told you it was a good idea to steer homeowners to the MRA to get loans?
104. Is it part of your job to steer people to the MRA to get loans?
105. Do you recall that when you first talked to me I told you to get the hell out of there?
106. Did I ever say anything to you at any time that you could come onto my property?
107. To the best of your recollection, how many times have you visited my property?
108. Did you ever come to my property when I wasn’t there?
109. Did you come to my home November 16, 2022?
110. Did you put 16 back-dated tickets in an envelope and tape it to my door?
111. Why did you put the tickets on my door?
112. When you put the tickets on my door did you know that the City of Malden had filed a petition for the same offenses you cited me for in the tickets you put on my door November 16, 2022?
113. Did you know that Building Inspector Ron Shah taped a red tag on my door demanding immediate evacuation?
114. Was Building Inspector Ron Shah with you when you put the tickets on my door?
115. Did you receive a complaint that prompted you to put tickets on my door November 16, 2022?
116. Did you go into my back yard to inspect the premises before you put the tickets on my door?
117. Did you go ito my back yard on any of the days you stated on the back-dated tickets as being in violation of the Health Code?
118. Where did you get the idea of steering peope like r Leuchter toward MRA?
119. Did you write this notation: “OTC sent gave Mr Leuchter MRA contact info”?
120. On what date was the above notation made?
121. What does OTC mean?
122. Was it a coincidence that you and Building Inspector ron Shah both showed up at Mr. Leuchter’s house to ticket and red-tag him only hours after he declined to sign a contract with the redevelopment Authority?
123. What conversations did you have with other city officials that led to the coincidental ticketing and red-tagging of Mr. Leuchter’s front door?
124. Where were you when you were making out the tickets?
125. Did you come onto the property to make any inspectios of any of these dates that you back-dated the tickets for November 2, 3, 4, 6, etc?
126. Did you go into the back yard November 16, 2022?
127. Have you ever seen any overgrown foliage or debris on the property since the petition was filed February 28, 2022?
128. Did you have a search warrant to go into the property November 16, 2022?
129. Why are the photographs taken before the improvement clearer than the ones taken after the improvement?
130. What reward or incentive is given to you when you refer a potential borrower to the Malden Redevelopment Authority?
131. What conversations have you had with other city officials about Mr. Leuchter or his property?