Campo Martha, Baja California

American Residents of Campo Martha were threatened in March with eviction from their residences if they did not pay fees of up to $5,500 apiece to cover unpaid camp Federal Zone taxes dating from 2001.

The owners of the camp say that the rents do not cover the assessments, the property will be sold at auction and everyone will be evicted unless the residents do not help.

Campo Martha is a coastal trailer camp run by Martha Sandoval. The camp is the sole source of support for Martha and her ten children. The Sandoval family began squabbling after Martha became incapacitated in 2001. Because of lawsuits and the ensuing wrangling among family members, a judge ordered the children to undergo mental examinations and temporarily put Martha in a nursing home. He ordered the bills for Martha's care be paid from the trailer camp.

A nieghboring landowner has laid claim to part of Campo Martha, and apparently has originated various legal actions related to this issue. He is married to one of Martha's daughters, and is likely to bid on the campo if it is auctioned.

American residents of Campo Martha feel that the money they have paid for the Federal Zone assessment has been diverted from the monthly fees they have paid, and that they will be forced to pay the same fees twice. There has been a sucession of lawyers and conservators demanding money from them; the legitimacy of these claims is in question. They have obtained legal representation.

Information source, cf."Gringo Gazette," April 22, 2004, pg. 7