# Do you want killdozers? Because this is how you get killdozers. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 20, 2017, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155 "2017-11-20T03:53:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/1 "2017-11-20T03:53:58Z")
> **[They confessed to minor crimes. Then City Hall billed them $122K in...](https://www.desertsun.com/story/news/crime_courts/2017/11/15/he-confessed-minor-crime-then-city-hall-billed-him-31-k-his-own-prosecution/846850001/)** > > In Indio and Coachella, prosecutors take property owners to court for some of the smallest crimes, then bill them thousands and threaten to take their homes if they don't pay. > [@](#): > > Through an extensive review of public records, The Desert Sun has identified 18 cases in which Indio and Coachella charged defendants more than $122,000 in “prosecution fees” since the cities hired Silver & Wright as prosecutors a few years ago. With the addition of code enforcement fees, administration fees, abatement fees, litigation fees and appeal fees, the total price tag rises to more than $200,000. I generally have pretty low expectations of California, but in this case they have managed to undercut even those. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/2 "2017-11-20T04:04:01Z")
From your link. > [@](#): > > Silver & Wright, a law firm contracted as Coachella’s city prosecutor, took the building permit case to criminal court, filing 29 misdemeanor charges. Garcia signed a plea agreement, brought his house up to code, paid a $900 fine to the court and moved on with his life. But then, this April, **Silver & Wright mailed Garcia that hefty bill for the cost of his case,** saying if he didn’t pay up a lien would be put on his property and the city could potentially sell the house from under his feet. So you’re blaming the state for the acts of couple of small cities? Frankly, billing for the cost of prosecution sounds like something a Republican would do. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/3 "2017-11-20T04:23:30Z")
I want an Orange Killdozer! ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/4 "2017-11-20T05:07:42Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > From your link. > > So you’re blaming the state for the acts of couple of small cities? Frankly, billing for the cost of prosecution sounds like something a Republican would do. California? That’s, like, Palm Springs which might as well be Phoenix. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/5 "2017-11-20T05:07:46Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > From your link. > > So you’re blaming the state for the acts of couple of small cities? Frankly, billing for the cost of prosecution sounds like something a Republican would do. I’m not trying to assign blame to the state government of California, if that’s what you mean. It’s a useful catch-all label for all the silliness that goes on west of Arizona and Nevada but east of the Pacific Ocean. I realize that in this case we’re discussing the actions of some municipalities in California. > [@Gatopescado](#): > > I want an Orange Killdozer! Don’t we all? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/6 "2017-11-20T05:15:39Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > I’m not trying to assign blame to the state government of California, if that’s what you mean. **It’s a useful catch-all label for all the silliness** that goes on west of Arizona and Nevada but east of the Pacific Ocean. I realize that in this case we’re discussing the actions of some municipalities in California. > > Don’t we all? Bullshit. It’s just more of your “Dems do something wrong” crap all over again. By the way, Matthew Silver is a registered Republican. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/7 "2017-11-20T05:28:32Z")
What’s a killdozer? ---
**Author:** ![snoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@snoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snoe)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/8 "2017-11-20T05:48:28Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > What’s a killdozer? > **[Marvin Heemeyer](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_Heemeyer)** > > Marvin John Heemeyer (October 28, 1951 – June 4, 2004) was an American automobile muffler repair shop owner who demolished numerous buildings with a modified bulldozer in Granby, Colorado in 2004. > Heemeyer had various grudges against Granby town officials, neighbors of his muffler shop, the local press, and various other citizens of Granby. Over about eighteen months, Heemeyer secretly armored a Komatsu D355A bulldozer with layers of steel and concrete. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/9 "2017-11-20T05:52:07Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > What’s a killdozer? It was a short story, originally published in _Playboy_, I think, about a bulldozer possessed by some sort of evil alien spirit, attacking a unit of engineers on a Pacific Island during WWII. It was later made into a fairly crappy TV movie. But I guess what he’s referring to is this incident: > **[Marvin Heemeyer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_Heemeyer)** > > Marvin John Heemeyer (October 28, 1951 – June 4, 2004) was an American automobile muffler repair shop owner who demolished numerous buildings with a modified bulldozer in Granby, Colorado in 2004. > Heemeyer had various grudges against Granby town officials, neighbors of his muffler shop, the local press, and various other citizens of Granby. Over about eighteen months, Heemeyer secretly armored a Komatsu D355A bulldozer with layers of steel and concrete. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/10 "2017-11-20T06:26:26Z")
I want a killdozer! I want many killdozers. If only the economics of killdozer would just trickle down to me…sad. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/11 "2017-11-20T13:21:50Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > It was a short story, originally published in _Playboy_, I think, about a bulldozer possessed by some sort of evil alien spirit, attacking a unit of engineers on a Pacific Island during WWII. It was later made into a fairly crappy TV movie. > > But I guess what he’s referring to is this incident: > > [Marvin Heemeyer - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_Heemeyer) Actually, it was originally published in _Astounding Science Fiction_ in 1944 and frequently reprinted. According to the isfdb it was never printed in _Playboy_. It’s by the excellent SF author Theodore Sturgeon (although you’d never guess that from the admittedly crappy TV movie). It was adapted as a comic book story that was much more faithful for Marvel’s _Worlds Unknown_ back in 1974. It’s typical of me that I know about the Sturgeon story and its adaptations, but had no idea about this guy Heemeyer. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/12 "2017-11-20T13:50:16Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Actually, it was originally published in _Astounding Science Fiction_ in 1944 and frequently reprinted. According to the isfdb it was never printed in _Playboy_. It’s by the excellent SF author Theodore Sturgeon (although you’d never guess that from the admittedly crappy TV movie). It was adapted as a comic book story that was much more faithful for Marvel’s _Worlds Unknown_ back in 1974. > > It’s typical of me that I know about the Sturgeon story and its adaptations, but had no idea about this guy Heemeyer. Thanks, I stand corrected. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/13 "2017-11-20T14:20:38Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Thanks, I stand corrected. It wouldn’t be surprising if it w_had_ been reprinted in Playboy – Hef was, as I’ve observed, a science fiction geek, and he frequently printed and reprinted science fiction, especially in the early days (George Langelaan’s _The Fly_ originally appeared in Plyboy, and they reprinted Ray Bradbury’s _The sound of Thunder_ after its initial pulp publication). I had to check to see if they had reprinted it in Playboy. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/14 "2017-11-20T14:29:37Z")
It was NOT a crappy movie! It was fun and suspenseful and had a good cast. Plus, bulldozer! Whether or not it was faithful to the story, I can’t say. But that’s not important now. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/15 "2017-11-20T15:22:40Z")
Killdozers don’t scare me. Killdozers driven by genocidal robots…that might get my attention. Self-driving killdozers, well, that the end of human civilization as we know it. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/16 "2017-11-20T15:39:55Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > Killdozers don’t scare me. > > Killdozers driven by genocidal robots…that might get my attention. > > Self-driving killdozers, well, that the end of human civilization as we know it. Does [the band](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmDXBezwpSc) scare you? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/17 "2017-11-20T16:40:59Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > I’m not trying to assign blame to the state government of California, if that’s what you mean. It’s a useful catch-all label for all the silliness that goes on west of Arizona and Nevada but east of the Pacific Ocean. I realize that in this case we’re discussing the actions of some municipalities in California. This Marvin Heemeyer dude did his business in Colorado. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/18 "2017-11-20T17:11:00Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > It’s typical of me that I know about the Sturgeon story and its adaptations, but had no idea about this guy Heemeyer. You and me, both, Cal. ---
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2017, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/19 "2017-11-21T00:47:55Z")
OP Link didn’t seem to work. However, a search on the Desert Sun’s website turned up a nice article. It’s quite critical of Silver & Wright and seems to suggest the cities of Coachella and Indio may have subcontracted the firm to go after municipal infractions but had no idea the lawyers would become so exploitive so now the ability to charge capitulators legal fees for their own prosecutions is now being reviewed. You’ve pointed us to an article showing how municipalities on the Left Coast are unwilling to just stand aside when they get news of people exploiting loopholes in their subcontract terms. Thank you, Ditka! It’s nice to see that your posts aren’t exclusively just crapping on Democrat deeds. Good to see you’re calling attention to injustice, even when it’s a Republican (led) firm doing it. –G! ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2017, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155/20 "2017-11-21T01:43:12Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Bullshit. It’s just more of your “Dems do something wrong” crap all over again. By the way, Matthew Silver is a registered Republican. I didn’t mention a political party in the OP. > [@Senegoid](#): > > This Marvin Heemeyer dude did his business in Colorado. I know. Like I said [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=20606521#post20606521), California is apparently contagious. It has infected nearby states. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-want-killdozers-because-this-is-how-you-get-killdozers/802155.md?page=2)