In reply to irish44j :
You weren't given these violations "because" people filed complaints. You were given the violations because you -admittedly - are violating laws, zoning, and registration requirements. People calling in on you isn't the cause of the issues. It's just a symptom.
This reminds me of all the lame threads about people complaining how they got a speeding ticket for going 85 in a 55 "because the cop had nothing better to do." rather than "because I was going 85 in a 55 like a dumbass."
While you are technically correct, I think you are missing the point. The situation is very different than your speeding analogy.
Get a speeding ticket, and you can have your day in court. You don’t have to pay 150% of the ticket, non refundable, to go to court. You pay the fine and get it back if you win.
Speeding is supposed to be enforced non discressionally. While not quite the case, at least you have the opportunity to face your accuser. I can’t report a neighbor anonymously for speeding and get him cited.
If I’m speeding down the highway, I’ve got roughly the same chance of getting a speeding ticket as anyone speeding around me. If I’m doing an engine swap in my garage in Sacramento county, I’ve got about a zero percent chance that a code compliance officer is going to notice, without delegating his power to my neighbors.
I’ve seen quite a few people back pedal on their support for the O.P. after seeing his messy yard. But he wasn’t cited for a messy yard, he was cited for doing major repairs on vehicles. Back to the speeding analogy, it would be like getting a speeding ticket because “your car looks fast, you must speed.”
Lastly, I think the point of this discussion isn’t about the guilt of the O.P.. It’s about what most of us consider overly broad and burdensome regulation that directly affects our hobby, and for some their basic ability to secure transportation. I know when I was young and poor, I worked on my cars because I had to, not because I wanted to. The prospect of taking my car to a shop was as likely as me pulling the repair money out of my rear end. I worked on my car at friends and relative’s houses, outlawed under this regulation. As I grew more financially secure, I bought a house and got more involved as a hobby- also outlawed under this regulation. I do pretty well now, can afford some land outside the city and could build my dream shop. Guess what- outlawed.
If you want the speeding ticket analogy to work, it would look like this...
County sets max speed limit for the county at 25mph, but there is no active enforcement. The general population ignores that limit- it’s not posted and everyone drives normally. Everyone is a speeder. A fellow motorist reports you ananomously and you are automatically deemed guilty and fined. Technically you are guilty, and ignorance of the law is not a defense. Do you just pay your fine and accept it? Start driving 25 while everyone else whizzes by?