California man displays naked mannequins after neighbor complains about high fence

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Wayne Freedman - ABC 7


SANTA ROSA, Calif. -- Don't mess with Jason Windus of Santa Rosa.

When a neighbor complained about his high fence causing a lack of visibility, and after the city wrote a letter telling him it violated a local ordinance, Jason cut that fence down to the maximum of 36 inches.

He was just trying to keep his dogs in the yard.

Now, his nosy neighbor really has something to look at. It's a garden party where the guests aren't smiling. But the host is.

"I couldn't bring myself to throw them away. I was going to use them for target practice," said Jason Windus about the mannequins in his front yard. Now, he says they serve a higher calling.

The rest of the neighborhood loves Jason's Garden Party.

"Dumb law," said a passing stranger.

"Makes the place more interesting," said another.

"The main parts are covered," said Valerie Palmer from a passing pick-up truck.

The city of Santa Rosa sent him a notice of a zoning violation for a fence that is too high and blocks a suburban corner.

"It is very serious. They made me freak out," said Jason as he showed us the official paperwork. "They were going to fine me every day it wasn't taken down."

So Jason called a friend with a big saw, and they cut off the top of the fence to make this corner fit code. It's 36 inches now. But Jason was not finished. "I guess the average person would get angry and cop resentment? I throw a naked party in my yard."

Which led to a sign for a still-anonymous neighbor, and what appears to be perfectly legal compliance. "They wanted me to tear down my fence to see inside my yard, and now they get to."

With steely, defiant stares.

A spokesperson for the city of Santa Rosa notes that this was a zoning code violation.