【NEWS】

Woman Goes to Jail for Not Mowing Lawn

If you are a resident of Lenoir City, Tennessee, you might want to remember to mow your lawn — otherwise, you will be spending the night in jail. 
 
Karen Holloway just spent six hours in a jail cell for failing to maintain her yard in accordance with the standards set by the city. 
 
The saga began last summer, when Holloway was sent a citation for her overgrown grass and shrubbery. Holloway, who works a full-time job and has two children living at home, a husband in school, and one family vehicle, admits the yard needed some attention but that it just wasn't feasible to do the work.  

"The bushes and trees were overgrown. But that's certainly not a criminal offense," she says. 
 
Last week, Judge Terry Vann handed down a five-day jail sentence to Holloway for refusing to comply with the city ordinances regarding yard maintenance, specifically the lack thereof. Holloway feels this was all just too much, saying, "It's not right. Why would you put me in jail with child molesters and people who've done real crimes, because I haven't maintained my yard."
 
In addition to the severity of the sentencing, Holloway say she also feels that she was bullied during the process because she was never read her rights or told that she could have a lawyer present. 

This isn't the first time Holloway has been cited by the city. While her husband was serving in the military and deployed overseas, she was also sent a citation.  

On Tuesday, when she stood in front of the court once more, her sentence was reduced to six hours. The judge admitted Holloway is not a criminal, and that this is not a criminal case — but she was still sentenced to jail. Holloway turned herself in Tuesday evening and served her six hours.
 
Neither the judge nor the police chief have responded with comments. 
  
This is not the first time someone has been sentenced to jail because of the state of his or her property. Linda Ruggles of South Carolina was unable to pay the $500 fine for the loose shingles left on her roof after repairs stalled following the 2008 recession. She spent six days in jail.
 
As far as Karen Holloway, she's enlisted an army of friends and family to help keep her lawn shipshape. She'll be back in court for a follow-up hearing in November to check on the progress. The judge says he could add more jail time if the city isn't satisfied with her cleanup. 

Tell us what you think about this story in the comments below. Have you or your neighbors ever been cited for not complying with city ordinances? Do you think the punishment was extreme? 

---http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/oddnews/woman-goes-to-jail-for-not-mowing-lawn-182126275.html

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只因没有打理草坪，草坪的主人被关进监狱

如果你居住在美国田纳西州的勒诺城，你就会想要把“修剪草坪”牢记于心了，否则你可能得去蹲监狱了。

凯伦•霍洛威（Karen Holloway）刚刚就在牢房关了6个小时，就因为没有按照当地的相关法律来整理她家的院子。

这一事件可以追溯到去年的夏天，那时，霍洛威就因为她家院子里无人打理的草坪和灌木而收到法院的传票。霍洛威，有一份稳定的工作，她和两个孩子住在一起，她的丈夫不在家，家里有一辆汽车，她承认她家的院子需要人来打理，但是家里暂时无人能来做这件事儿。

她强调，“ 灌木和杂草的确是生长得过于茂盛，但是这绝对不构成犯罪“。

上周，法官Terry Vann判处霍洛威5天监禁，因为她没有遵守城市管理条例中关于打理院子的相关规定，特别是其中的院子越少打理的规定。霍洛威觉得这样的判决是过于严重的，她说，“这根本不合理，就因为我没有打理好我家的院子，你们就把我和那些真正的罪犯，例如猥亵儿童的罪犯，关在一起？”

除了处罚过于严重外，霍洛威也认为她在这一事件中受到了不公正的待遇，因为，她从未被告知她可以有辩护律师或者享受了其他的公民权利。

霍洛威已经不是第一次被当地法院传讯了。早在她丈夫还在服兵役或被派遣到海外时，她就已经收到过法院的传票。

周二，当她再一次在法庭上出席时，她的判处减少为监禁6个小时。尽管法官承认霍洛威不是一名罪犯，承认这也不是一起刑事案件，但她仍被判处监禁。在周二晚上，她就在牢里呆了6个小时。

对此判决，当地法官和警方都没有做任何公开发言。

霍洛威也不是第一个因为自己财产的管理问题而被判处监禁的当地居民。例如，美国南卡罗来纳州的Linda Ruggles，在屋顶木瓦变松时，由于2008年的经济衰退，无法支付500美金的修理费用，导致屋顶修理停滞，因为这个原因，她被判处监禁6天。

现在，霍洛威请来了一些朋友和家人来帮忙打理她家的院子，她在11月份将再次回到法庭来做后续的汇报以便法庭监督其进展。法官称，如果她家院子打理后仍不能达到城市管理条例规定的标准，她可能会被监禁更长的时间。

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Anyway, wherever we are, we should enhance legal consciousness, learn and know about laws and regulations, and abide by them.