Family Could Lose Everything : War Over a Wall Rages On

The case of a too-tall Northridge wall that began with a complaint about extra blocks being illegally piled atop a back-yard fence has turned into one of misery being heaped upon misery.

The owner of the wall has begun serving a seven-year prison term for assaulting a building inspector who confronted him about the wall’s height.

The building inspector, who lost an eye in the attack and collapsed when he recently returned to his job, is waiting to see if he can ever work again.

The wall owner’s wife, who is now raising her family alone, has been sued for $8 million by the injured inspector.

The city of Los Angeles, which is irritated that the offending wall remains up, has ordered the woman to lower it and the ornate wrought iron fence in her front yard--or risk a jail term herself.

No one involved in the dispute has escaped the fallout.

Teresa Duran is bitter. “It’s unfair. They’ve gotten their satisfaction. My husband is in jail. I don’t deserve this,” she said Wednesday.

Building inspector Calvin O’Daniels is frustrated. “I don’t know how this will end. I had some more tests this morning. My remaining eye isn’t in that good shape,” he said.

City building and safety department executive officer Warren O’Brien is angry. “She could drag this out another year or longer. But if she doesn’t comply with the zoning law, it will end up in court,” he said.

Officials say they tried for months last year to get homeowner Samuel Duran to comply with a city ordinance that prohibits fences taller than 3 1/2 feet in residential areas such as his in the 19000 block of Community Street.

A neighbor had complained that Duran’s concrete-block wall had been added to and that the front fence was blocking the view of motorists using a nearby driveway, officials said.

When O’Daniels confronted Samuel Duran about the fence on May 11, 1987, the 41-year-old auto mechanic attacked him with his fists and with a shoe, according to testimony at Duran’s trial in March. Doctors were unable to save the 62-year-old inspector’s injured right eye.

Duran claimed O’Daniels punched him after following him into his house and demanding a bribe. Nevertheless, a jury convicted Duran of mayhem and assault. The San Fernando Superior Court judge who ordered the maximum prison sentence on April 28 said Duran showed no remorse.

Teresa Duran said she intends to visit her husband at the state prison at Chino each Saturday and Sunday until he is eligible for parole in 3 1/2 years. During the week, she is continuing her full-time job as a technician at an electronics company.

Her 14-year-old daughter is doing the yard work in Duran’s absence and her 11-year-old son collects newspapers in the neighborhood to recycle to help with family finances, she said.

O’Daniels’ lawsuit was a jolt, said Duran, 43. So was the new city citation issued two weeks ago. It demands the lowering of both the rear concrete-block wall and the wrought iron fence in the front.

“Our house has been broken into twice,” she said. “Being a single parent now, I can’t afford to lose security for my home.”

Insurance Won’t Pay All

Nor can she afford to lose the security of her home that is threatened by the lawsuit. Duran said her homeowners insurance will pay $100,000 of O’Daniels’ claim. But a civil court judgment in O’Daniels’ favor could enable him to seize both the house and the couple’s future paychecks, she said.

“I would be out on the street with my children,” she said.

O’Daniels said his lawyer set the amounts named in the lawsuit. He said he does not relish the idea of becoming the owner of the Durans’ house--and its over-height fences.

His immediate goal is to save the vision left in his remaining eye and then return to work, O’Daniels said.

“I tried to go back to work last month but I collapsed at my desk. They had to call the paramedics for me,” he said.

O’Brien said the city is not harassing Teresa Duran by taking up the fence fight with her.

“We’re not picking on her. We’re following up on the original complaint,” he said. “We don’t single out certain people about their fences. We’re following up on complaints.”

The city will not divulge the identity of the person who complained about Duran’s fence, O’Brien said.

“We don’t want to have a war going on out there,” he said.