VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Channel 9 was there Tuesday when a Daytona Beach man lashed out in court over his dilapidated home.
There's no roof, but there are piles of trash at the home on Berkshire Road in Daytona Beach.
The owner of the home, John Burch, said his property is a work in progress and said he's being harassed by code enforcement.
"He come out here like a little..." Burch said as he pretended to pull a hood over his head. "That's (like) the black KKK."
Burch said code enforcement has gotten in the way of him fixing up the home.
"We do what we have to do," said Hector Garcia, of Daytona Beach Code Enforcement. "To call us a black KKK -- I've been called worse."
At one point, the judge asked about the neighbors to which Burch replied, "You live in 'Mr. Roger's Neighborhood.' I live in the hood."
During the last two years, Burch has been given more and more time by the city's building department and the City Commission itself.
"Let's tell the truth. I was given a special privilege. You are right," said Burch.
But code enforcement has cited Burch more than 50 times. He's been fined in the past and has asked for extensions of his building permits multiple times.
Garcia said Burch is abusing the system by asking for more time but not cleaning up the mess.
"It is probably the worst property in the city right now. We get calls on this property on a daily basis," said Garcia.
The judge acknowledged Burch was given a favor but hasn’t followed through on his end.
"You didn't get it done. You got fined," said Special Magistrate David Vukelja. "So what did you do? You end-around the special magistrate. You go to the City Commission and you take it up with them. They agree to give you more time. You still don't have it done."
In the end, Burch was victorious in court on Tuesday due to a technicality. The city didn't cite the proper violation for the judge to levy $1,000-a-day fines. Now, they'll have to re-group and fight another day.
City officials said Burch's home already has a $30,000 lien, the maximum allowed, by the city ordinance. They're now working to see if the lien is in Burch's name or the former homeowner's.
"If he's going to fix it up, fix it up. If that's what he wants to do, fix it up, but it don't look like it," said resident Dedra Jones.
Jones said the property has been dilapidated for about two years and believes it's a danger to children and attracts pests.
"The biggest things was the critters. They have a lot of critters over there, and it's too much," said Jones.
Residents told Channel 9 they plan to continue to complain about the mess until it's cleaned up.