Atlantic City, NJ Condemnation
Casino Reinvestment Development Authority v. Coking
The Abuse of Eminent Domain in Atlantic City
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Vera Coking won her fight for her Atlantic City home against a New Jersey state agency and Donald Trump.
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“Individual freedom finds tangible expression in property rights.” This statement, penned by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, recognizes how central property rights are to a free society.
Yet, with increasing frequency, federal, state, and local governments bow to political and economic expediency and trample the rights of property owners.
Vera Coking, an elderly widow from Atlantic City, knows firsthand the power of unaccountable government agencies. The Institute for Justice successfully defended Vera against the condemnation of her home by a State agency that sought to take her property and transfer it—at a bargain-basement price—to another private individual: Donald Trump. Trump convinced the State agency to use its “eminent domain” power to take Vera’s home so he could construct a limousine parking lot for his customers—hardly a public purpose. And unfortunately, cases in which government agencies act not as protectors of constitutionally guaranteed rights, but instead as agents for powerful, private interests, have become all too common.
Thanks to IJ’s advocacy, Vera Coking won in court and continues to enjoy her home of more than three decades.