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ENVIRONMENT Serial killer's squalor Monica is liable for cleaning up hazardous conditions on her farm Comment By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 24, 2015 at 5:33 PM By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 24, 2015 at 5:33 PM » RELATED CONTENT • Monica on the stand: 'I generally shoot my animals more than once'... • Serial killer Susan Monica found guilty on all charges, gets 50 years... • Susan Monica's pig farm » Social News WIMER — Susan Monica's now infamous 20-acre rural Wimer pig farm has sat frozen in time since investigators left the property 15 months ago armed with evidence in the case against Oregon's newest serial killer. They whisked away what remained of Monica's two gunshot victims after she fed them to her pigs, discovered during a three-week search in which sickened investigators wore respirators while they plied for evidence in buildings deemed unfit for humans. The piles of garbage, exposed animal bones and squalid living areas that contained no running water or workable sewage facilities became an afterthought as the 66-year-old Monica's double-murder case wound through the courts. Now, after Monica's Tuesday conviction and two consecutive sentences of life in prison, an extensive and potentially expensive cleanup of the property could be put into motion any day now with a simple telephone call. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and Jackson County are essentially one filed complaint away from initiating an inspection and cleanup process that could take on many different looks, depending upon who instigates it and what they find. "We're in the early stages of this," says David Esh, the DEQ's solid-waste specialist in Medford. "We have a whole stockpile of chickens and eggs here, not knowing what's going to go first. "Right now, we're at ground zero at possibly trying to do something about this place," Esh says. Just as Monica was found responsible for the crimes on the farm, so, too, will she be held liable for cleaning it up — even from her prison cell, if need be. Monica could instigate cleanup procedures on her own, deed the property to someone else who would take on that liability or watch government-hired crews handle the cleanup and wait for the bills, authorities say. "She's going to have to fund it," Esh says. "It's her property." The lid on Monica's life at her West Evans Creek Road property blew off Jan. 10, 2014, when sheriff's Sgt. Nathan Sickler turned on his video camera and strolled up Monica's driveway to document the initial search that turned a missing-person and identity-theft case into a double homicide. Sickler's camera captured a cornucopia of code violations, ranging from open raw sewage and improperly stored tires to buildings eventually condemned and deemed unfit for humans. It was the first time the farm's unsanitary conditions reached the county's radar screens, but at the time it led only to deputies posting no-trespassing signs. "We do code-enforcement actions where we have a complaint. We don't have a complaint," says Kelly Madding, the county's development services director. During initial searches of the farm, several sheriff's deputies became sickened and crews began wearing breathing apparatuses while combing through the garbage, says Sickler, who is now a captain. "We don't know if it was something we were exposed to or a bout of the flu," Sickler says. But the circumstances are not lost on Esh, who says those findings likely will lead to a special hazardous-materials inventory before any cleanup crews step onto the farm. "There's a pre-existing unsafe condition there," Esh says. "Precursor knowledge of some risk would require some sort of hazardous-site (evaluation). Someone needs to evaluate the conditions of the site with the appropriate gear to be there — and that's certainly not me." Currently, any cleanup would have to be initiated by Monica and in conjunction with the sheriff's department and the county because of the unsafe conditions and trespass posting, Esh says. Depending upon the circumstances, the DEQ could initiate cleanup, Esh says. "At some point, someone would have to make a call, go in and do something and worry about the potential funding impacts at a later time,"Esh says. Monica could sell the property as is, but Oregon law requires full disclosure of the environmental problems associated with the site — including the nature of Monica's crimes on the premises. County assessor's records show Monica bought the property in 1991 for $35,000 and its market value was listed in 2014 at $272,240. County clerk records show she owns the property outright, with two outstanding liens totaling about $2,100 from a road construction company. She also could deed it to someone else who would then assume those cleanup responsibilities. Monica, whose crimes fit the FBI definition of a serial killer, has remained lodged this week in the Jackson County Jail, awaiting transfer to the state Department of Corrections. Her defense attorney, Christine Herbert, says Monica plans to hold on to the property at least until her automatic appeal is heard. "She doesn't want to let it go," Herbert says. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 541-776-4470 or [email protected] . Follow him at www.twitter.com/MTwriterFreeman . By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 24, 2015 at 5:33 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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