Seaside City Stumped by Deeds of Tree Poisoner : Threatening Letter Accompanies Killing of Tall Pines in Palos Verdes Estates

First about 30 pine trees in a neighborhood of multimillion-dollar homes in Palos Verdes Estates started to turn brown. Then property owners noticed that suspicious holes had been drilled into the trees and some chemical poured inside.

Finally, came further confirmation that the 40-foot trees were victims of deliberate poisoning--a chilling anonymous letter was mailed to the owner of some of the pines, complaining of the interference with the “light, airspace and views of others.”

In the exclusive seaside city, which values trees so much that it is difficult to get them legally removed even when they are a nuisance, the lawless act was shocking.

Officials and residents are convinced that the poisoning was the work of one or more people who wanted to eliminate the tallest trees that interfered with their ocean view. The pines stand out among the lower-lying trees and shrubs in the Via del Monte area below historic La Venta Inn.

“When someone murders a tree, I call it arborcide,” said city Forester Walter Warriner.

The only good news, he said, is that “the person who did this didn’t understand tree physiology or know what he was doing.” Officials still do not know what poison was used, but some of the pines have “a good chance” of surviving, Warriner said.

Police Chief Gary E. Johansen called it the action of a “deranged mind.” Residents have given him the name of a person they suspect, he said, but they have provided no evidence.

“They’re going on gut feeling,” he said.

Compounding the mystery is the fact that the poisoner trespassed undetected on six properties, over fences and gates, before drilling several holes near the base of each tree and depositing the poison. In addition, although homeowners elsewhere in the hillside city have fought from time to time about interference with their spectacular views--which can extend all the way from downtown Los Angeles to the Malibu coastline and significantly increase the value of properties--residents and officials said there had been no such overt controversy in this neighborhood.

The crimes involved include felony vandalism, trespassing and destroying property worth more than $5,000, with penalties ranging up to a year in jail and a $10,000 fine for each violation, Johansen said.

Residents and city officials assume that the poisoning was done over a period of weeks, but was not detected until the trees began turning brown. Police were called Nov. 12.

“I’m convinced these trees were damaged by somebody to increase the value of his property” for resale, not to better “his own personal view, but (for) personal gain,” said Edward Bishop, a 22-year resident who was the first tree owner to notice the pines turning brown.

Trimmed Voluntarily

Donovan Black, who had 10 trees poisoned, said none of the six families had been asked to cut, thin or lower its trees. He said he voluntarily spent $500 last year to trim his taller trees after an uphill neighbor he was visiting showed him the effect the trees had on the view. That neighbor is not under suspicion.

Two weeks after the poisoning was reported to police, Black received an anonymous letter, written on a word processor, that opened with, “I hope you have a heart attack.”

While containing no direct threats, the letter said, “Someone ought to block your face with the back of a shovel and then dare you to remove the obstruction to your view.”

The writer said there should be a city ordinance “prohibiting anyone from cultivating trees that interfere with the light, airspace and views of others,” and compared Black to a person “who keeps junk cars or maintains a hazardous condition on his premises.”

The letter closed, “I wish you lots of luck; BAD LUCK!!”

Thought of Selling Out

Black said the incident has left him uncomfortable about living in his home of 23 years. “My wife and I are very much taken aback by this whole thing,” he said. “We’ve even made the comment we should put a ‘for sale’ sign on the house and move out and get away from people that are capable of doing this kind of thing.”

Calling the poisoning “a most extreme and abominable act,” City Manager Gordon Siebert said it is city policy to preserve trees and other greenery on public property along streets and in parklands. Removal is allowed only if the tree is a public nuisance or safety hazard, and must be approved by the City Council.

“The council rarely allows trees to be removed when people ask for them. There has to be convincing evidence,” he said.

The Palos Verdes Homes Assn., which administers deed restrictions on all private property in the city, prohibits the removal or topping of any tree over 20 feet tall without permission from the association board, according to Betty Collier, co-manager of the organization.

’ Absolutely Shocked’

Mayor James Kinney said he was “absolutely shocked” that someone would “take things into their own hands” and poison trees.

“We don’t have a view ordinance, but we’ve always had a sense of neighborhoods in our city. . . ,” he said. “Many, many times, people have voluntarily trimmed their trees, thinned them and topped them.”

Johansen has sent letters to local newspapers and to homes in the area asking for cooperation in catching the poisoner. “Who knows what his target will be next?” Johansen wrote. “If he feels he has been successful here . . . his next target may be the trees in your neighborhood.”

The Neighborhood Watch group is on the alert for tree poisonings or attempts to finish off the ones already attacked.