Humboldt County, California, turned its code-enforcement office into a money-making machine—fining innocent people $10,000 a day or more. Corrine and Doug Thomas poured their savings into a dream home in the redwoods, then got a bill for more than $1 million for something the previous owner did. This summer, those homeowners won. 

Today we talk with IJ Senior Attorney Jared McClain about how local governments weaponize fines and delay to punish innocent people—and how IJ just dismantled one of the worst systems in the country.

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