Autistic boy's parents sue over yard fence

Neighborhood group objects to enclosure built for son's safety

Ivan Moreno, Rocky Mountain News

Published December 14, 2006 at midnight

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LITTLETON - His tendency to wander into neighbors' homes prompts his mom to compare him to "Goldilocks times 10."

His dad says he's a little unpredictable.

At times, 8-year-old Fletcher Illig - who is autistic - has turned on his neighbors' faucets, stepped into their showers and jumped onto their beds.

His parents thought a fence would help.

But now those 6-foot planks of wood have resulted in a neighborhood squabble making its way through the courts.

Fletcher's parents, Jean and Peter Illig, sued the Southbridge II Property Owners Association and the group's president, Carol Porter, which asked them to tear down or modify the fence.

In August, after the fence was completed, Porter sent the Illigs a letter saying their fence was not approved by the homeowners association and that neighbors had complained.

The Illigs say they don't understand why there's a problem, since their cedar fence is similar to others in the neighborhood.

They say they were concerned about their son's safety because he would easily jump over their previous fence, which was a little over 4 feet tall.

Fletcher uses sign language to communicate and wears an ankle bracelet to track him in case he gets lost.

"He's a great little boy," said Peter Illig, 48. "And he's very loving and affectionate. But he's unpredictable."

In April, Fletcher started a fire in his house by knocking over a halogen lamp on a mattress, his mother said. The Illigs are waiting for repairs to be completed to move back into their house.

A team of autism experts recommended the fence to prevent Fletcher from wandering away. The fence was paid for by Medicaid funds in July, more than two weeks after the Illigs sent a letter to neighbors informing them of the construction.

Jean Illig, 37, said after looking around and seeing that her neighbors' fences were similar, she thought, "Oh, good, we'll blend right in, nobody will know we're different."

The fence is tan cedar wood and similar in height to those of surrounding houses. The only difference is that other houses have dark wooden fences.

The Illigs say they doubt more than a couple of neighbors had a problem with the fence and that their HOA blew the incident out of proportion by soliciting complaints.

"The homeowners association just had such a mean attitude and that kind of entrenched everybody," Peter Illig said.

According to the lawsuit, Porter has asked that the Illigs go through the HOA's architectural review process to get the fence approved.

Porter did not return calls for comment Wednesday.

Jean Illig said the majority of their neighbors have been understanding and several of them have called Porter to show support for the family.

The Illigs have suffered "economic loss, pain, suffering, emotional distress, embarrassment and humiliation" because of the ordeal, according to the lawsuit.

"We'd just like to be like the rest of our neighbors and enjoy our yard," Jean Illig said. "The only difference is the safety needs."

morenoi@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2895

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