Reality TV celebrity alleges inspector illegally entered farm

By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI

Capital Press

A celebrity farmer is suing a county government in Oregon over alleged violations of his civil rights.

Matt Roloff, a pumpkin grower featured in the reality television show, “Little People, Big World,” claims a building inspector from Washington County entered his property and took photos without permission or a warrant.

The inspector’s actions constituted an “unreasonable search and seizure without lawful authority” and violated Roloff’s right to due process, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit seeks $200,000 in damages for trespass, invasion of privacy, emotional distress and civil rights violations, as well as an injunction barring further unauthorized inspections.

“It’s an interesting erosion of constitutional rights,” said Roloff. “We feel like we’ve been unfairly targeted for many years.”

According to the complaint, the inspector allegedly climbed under or over a fence at the Roloffs’ 34-acre farm near Hillsboro, Ore., in mid-July and began taking photos.

Roloff’s wife, Amy, confronted the inspector and followed him back to his car and demanded to see identification, the complaint said. After the confrontation, the inspector handed her a business card and drove away.

Upon reporting the incident to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the Roloffs were informed that it was county policy to allow inspectors to “surreptitiously go onto private property of its citizens without notice to them,” the complaint said.

“That response is what put us over the edge to file” a lawsuit, said Roloff.

Since 2006, “Little People, Big World” has followed the lives of Roloff and his wife, who both have dwarfism, and their four children. The show recently completed its final season on the TLC channel.

The farm includes several structures — a frontier town, medieval castle, tree fort and a pirate ship — that serve to attract visitors during the fall pumpkin season.

Roloff’s “agritainment” venture has had past problems with state and county governments over zoning issues, but he said inspectors have never entered the farm without permission.

“The difference this time is they passed multiple no-trespassing signs and basically snuck onto the property,” he said.

Roloff is represented by Donald Joe Willis, an attorney who earlier this year won a $1.15 million judgment on behalf of deceased property-rights advocate Dorothy English against Oregon’s Multnomah County.

Capital Press was unable to reach the attorney representing Washington County in the case.