The federal government has filed suit in U.S. District Court to remove people living on land the government says is owned by the V.I. National Park on St. John, after trying for several years to convince the people to leave.
“Individuals who take national park land for themselves destroy the spirit of the park and prevent the public from enjoying the park’s natural beauty. This office and the National Park Service will defend the integrity of the park, including by removing unauthorized persons, vehicles, and buildings when necessary,” U.S. Attorney Ronald Sharpe said in a press release.
The complaint covers 500 acres of land in Bordeaux, located on a hillside near Coral Bay.
When reached for comment, Jayne Schaeffer, deputy superintendent at the park, said the U.S. Justice Department’s press release covered the matter.
None of the 16 people indicated in the complaint could be reached for comment. They are not listed in the telephone directory’s listings for St. John.
The individuals listed in the lawsuit are Donna Roberts, Lucia Roberts Francis, Gloria Joseph, Keith E. Frazer, Alveno A. Herman Sr., Allen E. Roberts II, Edwin E. Roberts II, Shiree Ann Roberts, Ray Roberts, Lynette Magras, Gaye R. Moses, Sekou Magras, Lenny Liburd, Lee Christian, Delsa Christian, and Katika Kimbo Donovan.
According to the court filing, the 16 claim ownership to the land because they are descendants of John Nerkitt, who they believe owned the property. Social Security records available on the Internet show Nerkitt was born in 1916 on St. John and died in 1987 on St. John.
The park’s research shows that no one named John Nerkitt owned the property. According to the court filing, in 1863 the land known as Parcel 5 Estate Bordeaux belonged to Capt. J. Mourier. In 1872, Mourier conveyed six small parcels of that estate to former laborers. Those parcels were between two and four acres each and became known as Parcels 5B through 5G. In 1873, Mourier conveyed the remainder of Parcel No. 5 to R. Penn. It became known as Parcel 5A.
On Sept. 22, 1880, R. Penn conveyed Parcel 5A to W. H. Marsh. On Nov. 21, 1904, Marsh conveyed that property to Henrik Castenskiold. On Feb. 26, 1920, Castenskiold conveyed Parcel 5A to Charles Seymour Westbrook. On June 1, 1921, Westbrook conveyed the property to Seth Lagerstadt. On May 26, 1922, Lagerstadt conveyed the property to Herman Creque.
Herman Creque died in 1950. On Sept. 18, 1950 and Dec. 5, 1950 the District Court in the Virgin Islands issued orders conveying the entirety of Creque’s estate, including Parcel 5A, to his widow, Emily Creque.
In March 1951, she conveyed to the Virgin Islands a portion of the property about 7,700 square feet in size for the construction of a catchment and cistern.
On May 27, 1953, Emily Creque conveyed the remainder of Parcel 5A to David Stick. Stick was an associate of Laurance S. Rockefeller, and the two were in the process of purchasing land that would eventually become the national park.
Stick conveyed the property to Rockefeller’s Jackson Hole Preserve on Jan. 1, 1955. On Nov. 21, 1956, Jackson Hole Preserve conveyed the property, along with other lands on St. John, to the federal government through what is known as a Deed of Gift. The park opened the next month.
According to the court filing, in September 2010 park rangers observed the construction of three buildings on the public road running through the property. After further investigation, park officials determined that the construction had been initiated by the defendants. In 2011, the park informed the defendants that they were unlawfully occupying federal land which was part of the park.
Over the next three years, the park engaged in a series of discussions and meetings with the defendants over ownership of the property. The defendants maintained that they were the rightful owners of the property but at meetings in November 2011 and June 2012, they did not provide proof of ownership, according to the filing.
A subsequent meeting, on March 7, 2013, was attended by several of the defendants, their attorney, park personnel, and representatives of the Public Works Department, the Planning and Natural Resources Department and the Police Department.
At this meeting, the park presented what it called substantial evidence to support federal ownership of the property, including its recorded deed, surveys and reports by licensed surveyors. Park and local government officials again invited defendants to provide documentation to substantiate their ownership claim. Defendants and their counsel were unable to produce such documentation but said they were having a survey done. They claimed the survey would assist in demonstrating their ownership of the property.
However, the defendants have not provided any survey results or any other documentary evidence that supports their claim to ownership of the property, the complaint alleges, although they have been invited to do so many time.
The park also claims that the 16 have expanded their encroachment on the property from the initial three buildings to 10 housing structures, 11 vehicles and boats and illegal and unsafe electrical and water lines. They’ve also put in a concrete bump on the public road running through the property, blocked the road and put up no trespassing signs. They have 25 livestock on the property, according to the complaint.
The federal government also says the defendants have littered the property with items including trash, broken appliances, plastic containers, and abandoned vehicles.
The government also claims the defendants illegally tapped into V.I. Water and Power Authority electrical service to provide their buildings with power through a series of unburied extension cords that run throughout the property, a violation of V.I. and federal regulations, the lawsuit says, and a substantial risk to public safety.
The park indicates in the filing that there have been documented incidents of defendants harassing park visitors, hikers and even adjacent landowners using the public road.
The park asked the court to rule that the defendants have no interest in the property, that they remove all encroachments including buildings and vessels and award damages to be determined at trial.
