SUISUN CITY, Calif. – Two property owners are suing Solano County for more than $229 million, alleging the county illegally sold their private land at auction far below its stated market value and violated their constitutional rights.
John Donnelly Sweeny and Jennifer Frost, joint owners of Point Buckler Island in the Suisun Marsh, filed the lawsuit Nov. 19 in Solano County Superior Court against the county and more than 50 of its employees.
According to an email sent to the Davis Vanguard by the plaintiffs, the county illegally auctioned Point Buckler Island and sold it to the John Muir Land Trust for a price described as “far below its claimed $216 million market value.” The plaintiffs allege the county treated the land as public-trust tideland, “violating [the plaintiffs’] property rights and due process.
“This auction was a blatant abuse of power that stripped us of our private property without compensation or fairness. We’re fighting back to hold these officials accountable and protect property owners from government overreach,” the plaintiffs said in a statement.
In the complaint, Sweeny and Frost allege they “received no compensation for the taking and damage to their property and are entitled to recover damages, attorney’s fees, appraisal fees, engineering fees, and litigation expenses.” They are demanding a jury trial.
The complaint outlines the land’s history, noting that Point Buckler Island was patented as Swamp and Overflowed Land under fee-simple ownership, which the plaintiffs argue should “extinguish any claim of residual sovereign or public-trust ownership by the State.”
The filing asserts that Point Buckler Island should not qualify as tideland subject to public trust protections and acknowledges that, while the island “does exhibit tidal influences,” the public trust doctrine does not “reattach” to previously patented swamp lands.
The complaint further alleges the county “falsely described Point Buckler Island as if it were public-trust or state-managed tidal land subject to federal and state ‘restoration orders’ and access rights,” rendering the Jan. 22, 2025 auction “wholly unauthorized, ultra vires, and void.”
The plaintiffs argue they contacted Sheriff Thomas Ferrara and County Counsel Bernadette Curry before the auction warning it was illegal, but allege those warnings were ignored.
According to the complaint, the sheriff accepted “no public bids” and instead “pre-sold” the property to the John Muir Land Trust for $3.8 million.
The lawsuit identifies seven causes of action, accusing defendants of the “extinguishment of plaintiffs’ interests,” “unauthorized dominion over plaintiff’s property,” “failing to credit the Deed of Trust,” “interference with plaintiff’s property without consent,” “abuse of process,” “intentional interference with property rights,” and “rigging bids in a public auction.”
The plaintiffs conclude by requesting that a jury decide the case and “award just compensatory damages to which Plaintiffs are entitled.”
Follow the Vanguard on Social Media – X, Instagram and Facebook. Subscribe the Vanguard News letters. To make a tax-deductible donation, please visit davisvanguard.org/donate or give directly through ActBlue. Your support will ensure that the vital work of the Vanguard continues.
