TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Topeka mayoral candidate who wants to rid the city of its code enforcement department has been fined $1,000 for failing to maintain a vacant home he owns.
Under the sentence imposed Friday in Topeka Municipal Court, Randal Trackwell has 60 days to fix the home or he could face two months in jail. A judge will assess progress on the home during a hearing set for April 12, 10 days after the general election.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the Trackwell, 66, plans to appeal. He says Topeka code enforcement officers stole lumber he purchased to fix the two-bedroom home and were unclear about what needed to be done.
Trackwell calls the codes department “property police” and describes it as something a communist nations would have.
