Hatfields, McCoys come to Lombard area in local feud

A property-line dispute that's been simmering between two neighbors for more than two years erupted into fisticuffs, sending two people to the hospital, but no one to jail.

Though the DuPage County sheriff's office made three separate visits to the Lombard-area property, no arrests were made. A spokesman said the Saturday scuffle is still being investigated, but the department refused to release incident reports.

The fight is the latest chapter in an ongoing saga pitting Don Daniszewski and his girlfriend, Barb MacMillan, against brothers Tony and Simon Fiasche.

It all started roughly two years ago when Daniszewski complained that Tony Fiasche was draining a pond and filling in wetlands, causing Daniszewski's property at 21W551 Burdett Ave. to flood when it rained. Tony Fiasche said he was draining the pond for altruistic reasons.

"When I bought this property it was a dump," Tony Fiasche said. "I drained it and took some dirt out and was scooping and flipping dirt to get all the junk out of the pond. I pulled so many car tires and radiators and garbage out of there. I was actually trying to clean it up."

The south end of Tony Fiasche's property fronts nearby North Avenue, but runs for hundreds of feet to the north. The south end is zoned commercially and the north end - mainly forested wetlands - is zoned residential. Tony Fiasche said he stores equipment for his company, U.S. Lighting, at the property.

When county officials investigated Daniszewski's complaints, they cited Tony Fiasche for disturbing the wetlands and ordered him to repair the damage. Tony Charlton, the county's stormwater management director, said Fiasche has been making progress in the restoration efforts and has passed numerous inspections since being cited.

Next came the fence.

"What would you do when a neighbor comes and harasses you every day?" Tony Fiasche said. "The fence was put up to keep him from harassing me."

Tony Fiasche hastily installed an 8-foot-tall fence along Daniszewski's property line.

While he got a permit this time, county officials said he gave them "inaccurate survey information," and the permit to build a fence that tall on residential land was issued in error, said county board spokesman Jason Gerwig. Tony Fiasche is currently seeking to have all his property zoned for commercial use in order to keep the fence up. A land survey shows the fence on his property, so it can remain standing while the height issue is being resolved, county officials said.

But Daniszewski and MacMillan complained about the construction of the fence. Before Saturday, hundreds of nails protruded through the fence. The couple said it posed a safety risk to them, their pets and any visitors.

When MacMillan was gardening recently she fell onto the fence, cutting and scratching her side so badly she had to be treated at a hospital and postpone a vacation, she said. She filed a civil suit against Tony Fiasche for her injuries last month. She is seeking $15,000 in damages.

"A land owner has a duty to maintain their property in a reasonable and safe manner," said MacMillan's attorney, Dan Fabbri, after a court hearing Wednesday.

Tony Fiasche's attorney, John Kelly, offered no immediate defense for his client's fence, just saying all defenses were being "investigated."

Gerwig said the county issued a warning to Tony Fiasche in June for erecting an "unsafe structure." County inspectors noted the fence wasn't in compliance twice since the initial warning and the state's attorney's office is now involved, preparing to prosecute.

Last week, Simon Fiasche tried to remove the barbs sticking through the fence, but when MacMillan saw him doing the work while on her property, she ordered him off.

When Simon Fiasche refused to leave, records say, MacMillan called the sheriff's office again. He was arrested and later charged with trespassing.

Then came the cameras.

Video cameras were installed on the fence the next day. Tony Fiasche said his brother Simon put up the cameras. One was pointed at Daniszewski's home, which prompted another call to the sheriff's office. According to a redacted incident report, a deputy ordered one of the brothers to turn the camera away from the home and they complied.

Saturday's kerfuffle was the culmination of a day of disputes that started when workers began sheering off the nail points again at around 10 a.m. Daniszewski said the workers, including Simon Fiasche, were shooting the metal bits and sparks onto his property.

"It's been dry this summer; I was afraid it was going to set my lawn on fire," he said. "Plus, I didn't want my lawn mower to get a flat tire from those nail bits."

Late in the evening, after deputies had been called out once by each side, Daniszewski went out to take pictures of the workers. That's when he says he was attacked by up to four men who tried to drag him onto the Fiasche property as they beat him with their hands and boards. His face and head were still bruised Tuesday. He complained of hearing loss where he had been struck by a board.

Tony Fiasche claims Daniszewski provoked the fight by attacking his brother Simon that night, kicking him in the head and giving him a concussion. He said his brother was hospitalized until Wednesday from the attack.

MacMillan called the sheriff's office when the fight broke out, bringing deputies to the property for a third time that day.

"They were talking about arresting me," Daniszewski said. "I don't know why those guys weren't arrested. They could see I had taken a beating. That's what I'd like to know."

Tony Fiasche said they attempted to get a restraining order against Daniszewski, but the state's attorney's office wouldn't do it because the sheriff's office is investigating.

Feud: Dispute has been simmering for two years