A candidate for the Los Angeles City Council was served with a lawsuit during a debate Wednesday night.
Sheila Irani of Hollywood Hills is being sued by her neighbor for her alleged role in cutting down and pruning of trees on his land in order to improve the view from her multimillion-dollar home.
Irani, who is one of 14 candidates in a hotly contested race to replace termed-out Councilman Tom LaBonge as the representative for District 4, was served during the meeting being hosted by the Laurel Canyon Association at Wonderland School.
Her neighbor Eugene Matthews is seeking unspecified damages in the lawsuit filed Tuesday against in Los Angeles Superior Court, according to the City News Service. He is alleging negligence, trespass and unjust enrichment.
Matthews, who has has owned his Canyon Lake Drive home since 2001, claims in the lawsuit that last summer either Irani or someone working on her behalf cut down 10 conifer trees on his property and that a dozen other trees were severely pruned.
The suit also alleges Irani told him, "I am not going to let your trees mess up the view of my $3.4 million home," when confronted about it.
The cost to replace the trees cut to stumps was about $46,700 and the pruned trees were reduced in value by at least $50,000, according to the plaintiff.
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The complaint further alleges that "assorted male guests" of Irani "can and do look directly into plaintiff's daughter's room," causing stress to Matthews and his family.
City News Service contributed to this report
