County sued over botched tax sale

Written by TSI staff | 24 July 2010

From TSI Staff Reports

The owner of a property in Manchester is suing Coffee County to pay $4,706.28 in back taxes to the City of Manchester which are owed on the property.
Frederick D. Lowe III, of Mulberry, Tenn., filed suit in the Coffee County General Sessions Court earlier this month for payment of delinquent taxes owing to the City of Manchester, naming County Mayor David Pennington and Clerk & Master Charlotte Broiles as defendants. According to a statement released by Pennington, Lowe purchased property at 725 Mill Street at the County tax sale in December, 2007.
“At that time he was informed via announcements made by the County Tax Attorney that the property was being sold for county taxes only and that the buyer would be responsible for any city taxes owed. The Clerk & Master announced when she called out this parcel for bids that there were city taxes owed. Mr. Lowe knew when he purchased the property that there were city taxes owed.
“Mr. Lowe contacted the Clerk & Masters office on several occasions in regard to the city taxes. He was told that the city taxes were his responsibility and was referred to the County Tax Attorney, Mark Williams.
“In the interim Mr. Williams mailed a letter to the previous owner of the property which told her there were funds in the Clerk & Master’s office and she could claim them with proper identification. Ms. (Diane) Gilbert (now Todd) came in to claim the funds. By this time her name had changed to Todd and her identification said Todd. Since her deed said Gilbert the Clerk & Master called Mr. Williams to get advice on what to do. Mr. Williams drew an affidavit for Ms. Todd to sign swearing that she was the same person as Diane Gilbert. The funds were turned over to Ms. Todd in January, 2009. More than one year after the sale.
“Mr. Lowe claims that he attempted to contact Mark Williams. According to Mr. Lowe and what Mr. Lowe told the Clerk & Master at a later date, Mr. Williams never responded to any of Mr. Lowe’s calls nor did he respond to certified letters sent to Mr. Williams.
“After January, 2009 Mr. Lowe contacted the Clerk & Master again. She told him that she no longer had the funds because the previous owner had come in to claim them and therefore there was nothing she could do without some action on the part of the County Tax Attorney. Mr. Lowe attempted to get the Clerk & Master to say that the county should have paid the city taxes and the Clerk & Master told him that she would not let him box her in by giving a legal opinion. He would have to contact the tax attorney. That was prior to March, 2009.
“After that the Clerk & Master did speak with the Tax Attorney who indicated that he was working on the problem and would be contacting Mr. Lowe or had sent a letter to Mr. Lowe. The Clerk & Master did not hear anything further from Mr. Lowe or the Tax Attorney about the problem. That was more than a year before Mr. Lowe filed the General Sessions case making claims that the Clerk & Master had been negligent in her duties. The Clerk & Master had referred the issue to the tax attorney for an opinion and action.”