An Idaho couple who have farmed in Benewah County since 1979 have won another chance to claim 5.95 acres of disputed land after the state Supreme Court overturned an earlier ruling in Idaho's favour on Tuesday.
uncertain
Court → farm → Tuesday
Greg and Leah Sempel believed the land was theirs because an old barbed-wire fence had marked their property's boundary for decades.
asserted
fence → believe → decades
However, the state claims the land belongs to it and sued the couple in 2022 over its alleged unauthorised use.
uncertain
land → claim → use
According to the
judgment, the couple run Pokey Creek Farm, where they have grown crops, kept animals and built structures over the years.
uncertain
they → accord → years
They say the land inside the fence was theirs because that was what they had been told when the property was purchased.
asserted
property → say → what
They said the fence had been there long before they arrived, and they continued to treat it as the boundary.
asserted
they → say → boundary
The state, however, has documents showing that the disputed 5.95 acres are part of a much larger property it acquired in 1996.
asserted
it → have → 1996
But the Sempels argue that they had already been using the area for many years before the state became its owner.
asserted
state → argue → owner
With the Supreme Court's latest ruling, the competing claim will be examined again.
uncertain
claim → compete → ruling
The story began in 1979, when Greg's parents purchased the property for him and Leah to use.
asserted
him → begin → property
Before the purchase, Greg said he walked around the land with Tom Rathbone, a representative of the company selling it.
asserted
he → say → it
During that visit, Rathbone pointed towards a barbed-wire fence and told him it marked the northern boundary.
asserted
it → point → boundary
Greg later spoke to Chester Henning, who had owned the property previously.
asserted
who → speak → property
According to Greg, Henning told him that the fence had been built in the 1960s after an agreement with the company that owned the neighbouring land.
uncertain
that → accord → land
The couple say they had followed that boundary ever since.
asserted
they → say → boundary
In their early years, they planted crops and kept horses in the area.
asserted
they → plant → area
During the 1980s, they harvested timber, laid a gravel access road and built several structures.
asserted
they → harvest → structures
In the following decade, they added a greenhouse and raised livestock.
asserted
they → follow → livestock
They also claimed that government workers carrying out logging operations had treated the fence as the dividing line between the properties.
asserted
workers → claim → properties
How state came to claim the land
While the Sempels continued farming, the neighbouring property changed hands.
uncertain
property → come → hands
It belonged to Milwaukee Land Company until 1981, when Potlatch Corporation acquired it.
asserted
Corporation → belong → it
In December 1996, Potlatch transferred more than 4,100 acres to the State of Idaho through a land exchange.
asserted
Potlatch → transfer → exchange
The disputed 5.95 acres were included in that transfer.
asserted
acres → include → transfer
Years later, a survey carried out in 2016 raised questions about the couple's use of the land.
asserted
survey → carry → land
The state claimed that they were occupying part of its property without permission.
asserted
they → claim → permission
In August 2022, Idaho took the couple to court.
asserted
Idaho → take → court
Apart from asking the court to recognise its ownership, it sought compensation over the alleged unauthorised use of the land, timber removal and property damage.
asserted
it → ask → land
Couple refuse to give up land
The Sempels said they had been using the disputed area openly since 1979 and had treated it as part of their farm.
asserted
they → refuse → farm
They relied on a legal principle known as adverse possession, which can allow someone to claim ownership of land they have occupied for a required period, provided certain conditions are satisfied.
uncertain
conditions → rely → period
The couple argued that they had met those conditions by 1984, long before the state acquired the property.
asserted
state → argue → property
They also maintained that the fence was not simply something built to keep animals inside.
asserted
fence → maintain → animals
According to their account, it had been accepted as the boundary by previous landowners.
uncertain
it → accord → landowners
The lower court, however, ruled in the state's favour on the ownership dispute.
asserted
court → rule → dispute
On the issue of property taxes, Greg said he and Leah had always paid taxes on their property, but the lower court found that they had not provided enough evidence to establish it.
asserted
they → say → it
The couple challenged that decision in the Supreme Court.
asserted
couple → challenge → Court
What changed in Supreme Court
The Supreme Court found that the lower court had dismissed important parts of the couple's case without properly considering the evidence.
asserted
court → change → evidence
For example, Greg had given a sworn statement saying they had paid their property taxes.
asserted
they → give → taxes
Although older receipts were unavailable, the judges said that statement could not simply be treated as though no evidence had been presented.
uncertain
evidence → say → ?
The court also considered whether taxes paid on the couple's recorded property could count towards the disputed area under an exception recognised by Idaho law.
uncertain
taxes → consider → law
Photographs showed that some sections of the wire fence had become embedded in trees as they grew.
asserted
they → show → trees
…and 4 more, not listed.
The Aporia
