I too believe this was a fair resolution to the matter.
It seemed clear from the testimony that he may have been aware the putative buyer was selling drugs from the property and also may have warned him to be careful, that he was being watched.
End result? The property, already seized by the County, probably will be sold and he will receive a small proportion of the proceeds when the property is disposed of.
BTW Great job, Jennifer Tharp and Tiffany Groff as well as Judge Luitjen.
Judge grants Larssen nearly $29K in drug seizure
- The Herald-Zeitung
A Canyon Lake man was awarded half of the remaining rent owed on a property used to sell drugs the day after a Comal County jury denied him a cent.
San Antonio’s 144th District Judge Mark Luitjen awarded Roy Larssen, previous owner of Potters Creek store, $28,686.96 Friday.
The jury of seven women and five men ruled Thursday Larssen was not an innocent owner. They said he knew marijuana was being sold off the property at 2881 Potters Creek Road in Canyon Lake.
Larssen ran the convenience store with his wife for nearly 15 years before health complications and age forced them to search for a new owner.
Sam Ledbetter entered into a lease-to-own agreement for the property in 1997 and ran it until March 2008, when he was arrested on marijuana charges.
The Comal County Sheriff’s Office seized more than four pounds of marijuana from Potters Creek along with the 0.959 acres of land at 2881 Potters Creek Road.
Luitjen ruled Thursday the lease between Larssen and Ledbetter was an executory lease, since payments were not completed. This means both Larssen and Ledbetter had duties remaining to be performed.
Because of this, Larssen could only be awarded the nearly $57,000 Ledbetter had left to pay on the property.
Larssen’s property was seized and the jury did not award him any of the $57,000 Thursday.
Luitjen ruled Friday that the decision was excessive and granted Larssen $28,686.96, half of what Ledbetter owed him.
“I’m still not happy, period,” Larssen said. “I’m very down from the way I was treated. I lived here for 28 years and have always complied and tried to help out the cops.”
Comal County Chief Civil Prosecutor Jennifer Tharp said the judge made a good decision.
“I think the judge came to a fair disposition,” Tharp said. “He continued to uphold the jury’s verdict and sent an important message to the community.”
The jury was picked Monday and heard testimony through Thursday, when it came to a verdict. This was Luitjen’s first civil jury trial.
She said the jury’s decision proved the community does not tolerate drug dealers.
