A Neeses woman who won $220,000 in her lawsuit against Orangeburg County is now seeking a new trial.

Janice Hiott claims last month’s verdict was so inadequate that it requires a new trial. Orangeburg County is also requesting a new trial.

Circuit Court Judge James C. Williams Jr., who presided over the original trial, hasn’t scheduled a date to hear the motions for a new trial.

Hiott says she complained to the county for a decade that runoff from Starwood Drive, a county-maintained dirt road, was damaging her ponds, according to court documents.

Hiott said she contacted a pond repair service about fixing a breached portion of a dam after she bought the property in 1995. The repairman told Hiott the repair wouldn’t last due to runoff from the county’s road.

The county attempted to remove sediment from one of Hiott’s ponds in 1999 but stopped because of the excess moisture. Hiott contends county employees told her they would return when the area dried out, but they didn’t.

In December 2004, Orangeburg County workers constructed a sediment trap in the area. Hiott later tried to convince the county to work on three of her ponds, but it refused. Instead, the county said it would only work on one of the ponds because it wasn’t sure how much of her problem stemmed from Starwood Drive.

The county claims Hiott waited too long to sue. It also claims she asked to be compensated for damages dating back to 2005, but how much damage has been done since that time can’t be determined.

The county also said it never breached a contract with Hiott to make repairs because they never agreed on what the county should repair.

On May 29, an Orangeburg County jury awarded Hiott $10,000 in actual damages on her breach of contract complaint against the county. It also awarded her $210,000 on her separate claim that the county was negligent for causing damage to her property.

T&D Staff Writer Phil Sarata can be reached by e-mail at psarata@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5540.

You must be logged in to comment.