Stay on top of breaking news! Sign up for ABC 33/40 News e-mail alerts.

Your Email:  

Alabama Power Company has abandoned its legal battle against two Jacksonville residents who chained themselves to some trees last year to keep the utility from cutting them down.

Utility spokeswoman Gina Warren said the company's legal team decided not to appeal a judge's ruling in March that went in favor of the trees.

Alabama Power has said it disagrees with Calhoun County Circuit Judge John Thomason's ruling, which held that the utility could trim the trees, but not cut them down. The decision favored Barbara Wilson and Rufus McKinney, who sat in folding chairs and chained themselves to trees on two separate days last year when cutters arrived.

Thomason also ordered the power company not to trim the trees any more than normal in the past.

The utility has always trimmed and sometimes removed trees it believes interfere with power lines, but stepped up the trimming program after hurricanes Katrina and Ivan. A company spokeswoman did not immediately return a call for comment Wednesday on whether the ruling would affect cutting plans elsewhere.

Kinney said in a phone interview Wednesday that after a year of fighting for the decades-old pecan and cherry trees, he and Wilson were relieved the battle is over.

"Quite frankly, we're thankful to God," he said. "This became a matter of faith to Barbara Wilson and me. We believed in God, that God would help us through this and would save our trees."

Kinney said he and Wilson - who hardly knew each other when the dispute began but have since become good friends - "jumped for joy" after the March ruling.

The utility's decision not to appeal was first reported by The Anniston Star.

Warren said that, although no further legal action will be taken, the company's position had not changed.

She said in a phone interview Wednesday that the company will continue to cut trees when its trained staff believes it's necessary and will evaluate each case individually. She said she couldn't speculate on whether this case might open the door for more people to challenge utility cutting crews in the future.

"Safety for our customers and out employees and our ability to maintain service in a given area will drive our recommendations for each tree or growth," Warren said.

Email To A Friend