Marion, Va.– Six weeks after the Town of Marion’s August 6, 2025, abatement of the Parks family property, questions continue about how the cleanup was handled, what became of seized items — and how the story has now been portrayed in the local press.
On the day of the abatement, homeowner Mr. Parks was arrested and charged with assault after directing a town employee to leave his property. That criminal charge (assault) is a separate matter from any claims or potential litigation arising out of the Town of Marion’s actions during the abatement. From that point forward, body-worn camera footage shows town employees setting aside items from the property and loading some of those items into a town vehicle by the end of the day which was on the street. Todd Long said in a statement he provided for Smyth County News & Messenger “crew are directed to instructed to inspect the contents of items to ensure that any valuables are not inadvertently taken.” In contrast to this, in a letter provided by Flave Davis leading up to the abatement, he states “If you have anything of value you wish to keep, it must be out of sight of the street or right of way before the day of the abatement.” This letter was dated 7/29/25. This information was not mentioned by local press.
Those videos — more than 60 hours of recordings according to zoning official Todd Long — have drawn thousands of views on Marion Insider’s Rumble channel since being released by the Town of Marion under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) at a cost of $508.66. Yet the amount of footage actually produced by the town falls far short of what was recorded based on the figure stated by Long.
Although Smyth County News has a reporter at every town council meeting — including the sessions where the abatement was unanimously approved and where a $508.66 check was handed over for FOIA production of the videos — the paper did not report on the abatement or citizen concerns for more than a month.
Then, just before Mr. Parks’ upcoming court date, Smyth County News published an unusually lengthy article. Critics say its timing and tone appear designed to influence public opinion and judicial perception by opening with a town employee’s claim of “seized property” and quickly shifting to blaming the Parks residence for “lowering property values.” The paper omitted mention of other nearby properties in similar condition. We question the statement about “seized property” on part of the town and its implications. Does any local government have the right to “seize property” without the appropriate legal process?
The paper also quoted only part of Town Code Section 38-2 requiring storage inside a completely enclosed building but did not include language defining “screening” as visually shielding rubbish or clutter or the provision allowing storage behind fencing or on properly zoned junk-dealer premises. Videos from the abatement show two town officials stating, “We made an exception, and we can make an un-exception,” suggesting inconsistent application of ordinances.
Observers and transparency advocates argue that, taken together, the delay, the selective use of code, and the timing of publication point to an orchestrated effort by the town to direct the narrative away from its own conduct and toward Mr. Parks.
Todd Long confirmed he had received numerous complaints about the Parks property over the years yet no such complaints have been produced. In the previous abatement, only items visible from the street were removed. This time, town crews took down fencing in the back yard and removed items from fenced areas, despite earlier assurances that such storage was permissible.
Town officials have said they placed fence panels and possibly in storage for Mr. Parks to reclaim, but the family reports that they have not been told where the panels are or how to retrieve them. The article dated 9/12/2025 from Smyth County News is the first they have heard about this. Photographs taken by Three County News on 8/6/2025 show four men removing fence panels from the property and stacking them on a trailer hitched to a town truck. Smyth County News reported the panels were damaged in storage and replaced but did not say whether Mr. Parks must pay to recover his own fencing. It is unknown where these panels are or were being stored but if Mr. Parks is being billed for storage, there should be paperwork reflecting this and he should know where his property is being held.
Three County News also investigated the town’s handling of scrap removed from the property. At Berry’s Home Center in Chilhowie, tickets numbered 6270419 ($308), 5270403 ($464), 6270469 ($406), 5270386 ($377) and 6272328 ($3) were tied to the abatement. Four tickets were partially illegible when provided by Town FOIA officer and attorney Mark Fenyk, obscuring the seller’s name and address.
When the numbers were entered into Berry’s system, Three County News could see clear images of the vehicle, the tag, and the driver’s license used for the transactions. Berry’s declined to release the printouts to Three County News after making a phone call to “the boss” who we believe is none other than Bill Rush, former town manager of Marion. Instead, we were told that these print outs would be released only to the property owner or law enforcement.
When Mr. Parks showed up to get these prints out, he was also denied and told that they would only be released to law enforcement or the individual who brought the scrap in as he was no longer the owner once the town removed it from his property.
Despite Fenyk’s August 15 statement that “the Town did not sell any of the materials collected during the abatement,” numerous pieces of information positively without a shadow of a doubt prove otherwise. This raises serious questions as to the integrity of the Town of Marion’s operations.
One ticket shows a town employee’s residential address on the top; there is a town receipt initialed by Sara Kegley notes “Metal Sold—Parks” for $1,558. Another similar receipt was issued for $3. Long has said the materials taken by an employee were later returned and sold for $3, but the employee who stashed items then took them to a town vehicle is not the same employee listed on the Berry’s ticket. Long said the town is unlikely to pursue charges against that employee given the value of the stolen items and the fact he returned them.
An email from Commonwealth’s Attorney Phillip Blevins called the incident “an embarrassing and potentially criminal act by a town employee” and recommended a “transfer or destruction form” to legitimize any property gifted to staff, which critics see as an attempt to retroactively cover the town’s actions rather than prosecute wrongdoing. Meanwhile, Mr. Parks’ pending assault charge — which arose during the abatement — will proceed separately from any action over the town’s conduct. This might indicate that the Commonwealth Attorney is helping the town find a legal way to make theft acceptable and protect the town rather than actually being “tough on crime” as he promised in his campaign?
Open-government advocates argue the case highlights selective enforcement and possible violations of civil and property rights. One town council member, Tricia Spencer, has longstanding ties to financial supporters who supplied more than half of Blevins’ campaign funding, raising further concerns about impartiality.
The town has placed a $7,121.46 lien on the Parks property for the abatement, in addition to previous liens. The bill reflects charges for 10 employees and two officers plus machinery and vehicles — including $70 per hour for a pickup truck — though videos suggest the town may have billed for more hours than spent on site.
Video released under FOIA shows Mr. Parks grasping employee Flave Davis by the sleeve and directing him toward the road, after which Davis summoned police and directed them to file assault charges. These officers did not witness this incident and took Davis’ word for what happened. It is evident Mr. Parks did not push, hit or bring bodily injury to Davis in the encounter. Critics note that the removal of property and alleged looting began only after Mr. Parks was taken into custody. Prior to this, Mr. Parks is seen on video helping to sort items at the back of the house. The video labeled “assault” doesn’t actually show either Parks or Davis’ hands or what specifically happened during that encounter but there was another camera that did capture the whole incident where it is clearly visible.
Nearly $6,000 in community donations raised have been turned over to The Watchdog Group of Marion, Virginia — a newly formed nonprofit dedicated to assisting residents with transparency-related legal costs arising as a result of local government resisting — to help fund legal representation for the Parks family and others who have issues similar. In this case, in order to receive assistance from The Watchdog Group of Marion, the Parks family agrees to return the principal amount if they win their case so that it may help others like them in the future. We will have more about this organization in an upcoming article.
