We appear to have concrete proof that rich people have problems too: Matthew Prince, the billionaire CEO and co-founder of tech giant Cloudflare, is currently suing two of his millionaire neighbors because, according to court papers, the neighbors’ overly enthusiastic Bernese Mountain dogs keep treading just a little too far into Prince’s immense property. Somewhere the world’s smallest violin is invoking a mournful ballad for everyone involved.
Prince’s lawsuit, filed last month using a shell company, Pesky Porcupine LLC, alleges that the dogs—Sasha and Mocha—keep intruding into his backyard and have become aggressive with some of Prince’s guests. Prince lives in Park City, Utah, a popular tourist destination, and has so much land that there is actually an easement through his property that allows locals to pass through it on their way to and from a local ski resort.
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For the most part, locals seem to abide by the easement’s rules—with the exception, allegedly, of the dogs. Prince claims that his neighbors, Eric and Susan Hermann, have two very rowdy canines that just won’t abide by the law. “The Large Dogs do not stay within the Trail Easement and frequently roam around the backyard of the residence of the Plaintiff’s Property,” the lawsuit claims. “On several occasions, the Large Dogs have aggressively approached, chased, and harassed the residents and guests of the Plaintiff’s Property.” In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Prince claimed that the dogs have menaced his elderly mother and barked at his daughter, causing her to cry.
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“I get that we’re rich assholes,” Prince had the good sense to tell the newspaper, “but at some level, I’m also a father and I have to protect my daughter.”
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It would appear that Sasha and Mocha may also occasionally be pooping on Prince’s property. The billionaire’s lawsuit mentions an easement regulation that stipulates that an “animal causes a nuisance if it ‘defecates on any public sidewalk, park, or building, or on any private property without the consent of the owner of such private property.’” Here, the Hermanns seem to be pleading ignorance. “If such a thing might ever occur, we would, of course, pick up the dog poo,” Eric Hermann told the Wall Street Journal.
All things considered, the Hermanns may be winning the propaganda war. Bloomberg reports that a flurry of “Free Sasha & Mocha” stickers have popped up all over Park City, giving the dogs the aesthetic of fuzzy and cuddly political prisoners. Despite this, at least one other member of the community besides Prince has characterized the dogs as not particularly friendly. “They don’t want you near their people,” an elderly resident told the Journal. The Hermanns deny that their dogs are troublesome. They also deny they are the people behind the stickers.
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On top of that, the elderly couple have been regularly speaking to the press, in an apparent bid to make themselves seem more relatable than their billionaire neighbor. In a conversation with a local outlet, Eric Hermann recently characterized the feud as a “normal neighborly dispute” and said he and his wife “had no idea there was any problem with either our dogs…before Prince filed the complaints.” He added that the resolution of the problem “starts with a knock on the neighbor’s door and a conversation.”
Yet the story would appear to be about more than dog piss and local easement regulations. For years, Prince and his wife have been planning to erect an 11,000-square-foot “dream home” on their current property. The plans for this home have caused more than a little local drama and the Hermanns were apparently one of several residents who filed an appeal with the city over a previously split vote related to approval for Prince’s new house plans. The Hermanns have characterized Prince’s lawsuit as retaliation against them.
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Other local developments related to Prince’s proposed house have also raised eyebrows. After a local news outlet wrote about Prince’s plans to build the massive home early last year, Prince proceeded to buy the publication and install a new editor. That editor happens to currently live rent-free on Prince’s property, Bloomberg reported.
Gizmodo reached out to an attorney for Prince for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
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