Eminent Domain is the government’s right under the Fifth Amendment to take privately owned property for public use – to build a road, a school or a courthouse for examples. Under eminent domain, the government buys your property, paying you what’s determined to be fair market value. In recent years, there have been many debates over the suitability of eminent domain, and further its legality in specific instances. The government is allowed to seize personal property for private use if they can prove that they are doing it to serve what’s called “the public good”.

One instance of eminent domain being used by the government and it was challenged in court and was able to be a win for the sufferer. “When Canal Winchester offered Richard “Pete” Stebelton $9,249 for a 1-mile strip of his property, Stebelton thought the payment was too low.” What Canal Winchester wanted to use part of Stebelton’s property for was to build a bike path between Rager Road to a swimming pool.  “It used eminent domain to take a strip of Stebelton’s 80-acre property and hired an appraiser who determined that the $9,249 would be enough compensation.” “Instead, he went to court to challenge the village’s valuation.” “The jury decided Sept.20 that the land the village wants, along the northern edge of his property, is worth $37,000. But the jury also decided that by taking it, the village was also closing off a back entrance to the property and damaging the value of the rest of Stebelton’s land by $558,625”.(Narciso) 

A separate but more of the government using eminent domain in a more positive ruling for them. Would be 2 different court cases. One of them is the Kohl v. United States in 1876. “The U.S. Supreme Court first examined federal eminent domain power in 1876 in Kohl vs United States. This case presented a landowner’s challenge to the power of the United States to condemn land in Cincinnati, Ohio for use as a custom house and post office building. Justice William Strong called authority of the federal government to appropriate property for public uses “essential to its independent existence and perpetuity.” Kohl  v. United States, 91 U.S. 367, 371 (1875).”  “Condemnation cases like that against the Gettysburg Railroad Company exemplify another use for eminent domain: establishing parks and setting aside open space for future generations, persevering places for historical interest and remarkable natural beauty, and protecting environmentally sensitive areas”.(U.S.Department of Justice)

Last is more of the horrible ramifications that can happen when the government uses eminent domain but none of the promised things that were used to justify it, never actually come true.