I live on Santa Barbara’s westside and my handyman captured video on Monday of someone in my neighborhood taking all the artichokes off our plant with a knife she had in her car.
I’m happy to share with my neighbors as I usually leave fruit and vegetables in a basket to share with all, but this feels egregious. This plant only blooms once per year and she took all of them for herself. I understand this is a “public” parkway but it doesn’t make this action kind or neighborly.
Curious what other locals think about taking fruits and veggies.
You have good video of what she looks like and what car she drives, even of the passenger looking ashamed. Won’t be hard to spot her around the neighborhood and politely ask her to leave them for next season. Maybe offer to give her a few if she knocks on the door?
Lame, I know this plant and love seeing it fruit every year!
But, lame as it is, picking produce grown on public property is 100% legal in California. The parkway is public property. Technically, this woman broke no laws.
Sure it’s technically legal but it doesn’t mean this person is a good neighbor, or person. I would never take ALL of the produce off a tree that wasn’t mine.
And the logic of the parkway is a bit flawed. Can I go to my neighbors parkway and dig up their succulents because it’s in the public area?
Oh I certainly agree with you, I was speaking to the legality of it. Even branches from a tree planted in a yard, if they hang over the public right of way, are fair game legally.
The parkway is such an interesting place, legally. Maybe you could get charged with destruction of public property if you dug up plants.
The legal problem is that artichokes are plant material, and California law makes it a misdemeanor to willfully or negligently cut, destroy, mutilate, or remove plant material growing on public land or land the person does not own without written permission. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife summarizes Penal Code § 384a that way and notes that unauthorized plant removal can also constitute trespass and/or petty theft.
Santa Barbara’s street-tree code, for example, requires a written permit for planting, pruning, trimming, maintaining, or removing trees in a parkway strip, tree well, public area, or street right-of-way. And Santa Barbara County says residents may not remove or trim county street trees. Those are about trees, but they show the general rule: the parkway strip is not a “help yourself” zone.
The knife matters. Picking up fallen fruit or taking a loose piece hanging over the sidewalk is one thing; cutting cultivated vegetables from a plant looks much more like “cutting/removing plant material” and may be considered theft if the artichokes were planted or maintained by the adjacent property owner or the city.
They should not be cutting artichokes from the sidewalk strip unless they own/maintain that planting or have permission from the owner or public agency responsible for it.
You illegally planted on public property…
Our neighbors hired a guy to trim a Canary Island Date palm. The tree is/was a street tree, being trimmed w/out a permit. By the time we realized the damage being done (we ended up calling the police, because the dude doing the “trimming” wouldn’t stop), it was too late. The nesting Barn owl —- an owl which we had told these neighbors was nesting in the tree —- was long gone. She never came back and, as a direct consequence, we had a fairly challenging infestation of rats for several years.
OP – what’s the point here? You posted this on Nextdoor as well. I’m glad Nextdoor deleted your post but surprised to see Ehdat keeping it up. Or, did you come here after Nextdoor rightfully removed your public shaming post to reginite it?
You say you understand it isn’t illegal and that you’re happy to share, so what is your purpose in blasting this person (and their license plate) all over local media? Clearly, you mean to shame this person. Why? So, they may be greedy or inconsiderate in taking them all, but why did you feel the need to post a video of her, her license plate and her child or grandchild in the front seat who is clearly embarrassed about this? You didn’t need to expose this woman like this. You could have simply asked the question and described the very simple to explain circumstances without posting the video.
This passive aggressive online shaming is more “unneighborly” than taking the artichokes off public property.
Ooof, that’s an aggressive response Sac. Why would Nextdoor remove this? She’s in the public performing morally questionable behavior that is being discussed. Taking something on a parkway is legal and filming someone in public is also legal. The question is over is this right or is it not right, perfectly adequate to have on Edhat or Nextdoor, especially with all the slop that’s on Nextdoor. I believe she’s behaving badly and should be shamed so hopefully it doesn’t happen again.
SBSURFERLIFE – Honestly, I’m just sick of people shaming others online around here. She broke no laws. There is no point in showing the video OTHER than shaming her. Nextdoor does not allow this, so I’m not surprised it came down.
Sure, this lady should have left some artichokes, but seriously? Publicly shaming her and the occupant (likely a child) in the vehicle is just too much.
Bummed to see you so adamantly defend this useless shaming.
I can see both sides of this argument, I just happen to side more with this being morally repugnant. This was also caught on camera, legally. I understand you being sick of shaming so it might be time to take a little break from the internet and comment boards where discussions about human behavior are frequent.
“might be time to take a little break from the internet ” – WOW…. pot meet kettle.
“Morally repugnant” is pretty strong for taking public artichokes. Just like taking all the artichokes is legal and you find it “morally repugnant,” I think the “legal” filming of a person doing nothing legally wrong and their kid is pretty bad. Not “morally repugnant” though. Things I find “morally repugnant” are theft, fraud, defamation, etc.
Why do you need the video so bad? Well, you said it yourself: she “should be shamed.”
At least you’re honest.
Agree to disagree.
And not to beat a dead horse, although that’s what’s already happening here…. but seeing it initially on ND was one thing. Eh, pretty standard for that site. But to see it get removed from Nextdoor and then posted here, once again looks like it’s just for the purpose of passive aggressive shaming and eliciting outrage.
No purpose other than to shame this lady and further embarrass her kid/grandkid. Just not cool in my book.
Agree to disagree.
The woman shamed herself by behaving this way. I do feel for the kid though.
“morally repugnant”? are you kidding? you people are acting like this lady stole someone’s liver transplant. She took food from a plant on public property. pure and simple. keep trying to spin the narrative, it won’t change the facts. she did nothing wrong, and nothing illegal. the only one at fault here is OP for planting on public property then crying when someone reaps the rewards, and again the OP for publicly shaming this lady for taking food. its food and its public property that should be the end of the entire thing, but we all know you guys will just dig in and argue for the sake of arguing and nothing more. you people are truly warped.
She did something wrong–the stole the fruit of someone else’s labors. If I planted that and took care of it and was excited about eating the food that I’d grown, and I came out and saw someone had taken every one of them–that’s f’d up, I’d be pissed.
And no one is disputing that.
Would you post a video on multiple local social media sites showing her face, her license plate and the kid in the front seat of her car looking clearly embarassed?
I wouldn’t. That’s my only point. But God forbid I don’t join the rest of the mob. Someone on Nextdoor even suggested using her license plate to find her home address.
This is ridiculous and I’m done. Out!
I mean, some people have said that it’s not wrong at all, so, yeah, people are disputing that.
If it’s me, no, I wouldn’t post a video because it’s not that big a deal. In fact, I would tell the person that I’d put work into growing those and she should leave them there. No big thing really. If they wanted to turn it into a big argument then fine we’d go there.
Not wrong and not illegal aren’t the same. This disappointing horse has been beaten pretty dead though.
because nextdoor and many other sites prohibit things like this. its shaming pure and simple and what the woman did (picking food on public property) isn’t illegal, inconsiderate sure, but not illegal whatsoever. and frankly, it’s about $5 worth of artichokes….who cares. if the OP cared that much, that plant would be on their actual property or backyard, away from the public.
Bingo!
its pathetic at best that these people are so vicious about this. and the constant downvotes for several voices of reason. just ridiculous. you and I don’t always agree, but i respect you. these others on here a not people i would care to share my community with. public shaming for being hungry. public shaming for harvesting food on public land. sorry, these are not good people. 100%
K – I really think the only thing we disagree on is State St., but I appreciate the sentiment! Yeah, it really is mindblowing how adamant people are about this. Lots of “liberals” here showing their true colors.
thanks Sac, i feel the same about this, 100%. it was over the top and the OP is complaining about someone harvesting food on public property, and secretly filming it, to me, that’s just weird and intrusive. sure, perhaps the lady is not being considerate, but really, who cares. inconsiderate isn’t illegal or wrong. it’s just inconsiderate.
Planting produce in the right of way is a bad idea, so fair game.
Meanwhile there is a violent rapist on the loose and the police haven’t even released a description.
Why is that?
Trump is in town?
OLDE – What rapist is on the loose?
Oh and unlike some people would have you believe (posted AGAIN on Nextdoor and even more pitchforks in the comments), this is not a police matter so I don’t know why you’re complaining about the cops here.
Yes, they went and posted it AGAIN.
Calling someone a thief who is not committing a theft is basically defamation. Hopefully, she has an attorney.
I am agreeing with you on the artichoke issue.
I only bring up the rape here because there is no thread on it in Edhat and I want to draw attention to it.
Even though it was national news, the only Edhat coverage was the university press release which had almost no information. Some details have come out since then and have been published in the Nexus and KEYT, but the strange thing is that there has been no description of the perpetrator released. There are many obvious question about the crime, but it is almost as if details are being intentionally withheld.
https://dailynexus.com/2026-05-20/rape-and-stragulation-perpetrator-still-at-large-after-assault-in-campus-housing/
The horrible crime at UCSB. There is still no description of the perp that has been released by campus police. The parents have been begging for the campus police to do something. I wonder why the sherriff hasn’t taken over the investigation.
GT – Oh man! They have no leads at all? I would hope the SBSO would get involved. Then again, Brown is useless.
Sacjon – There is an article from yesterday or the day before where the parents are begging for help since campus police or doin nothing. They issued an informational bulletin – but was really surprised there has been ZERO description of the subject. Somebody knows something – there were others at the party that they met at. There are cameras.
Campus Police….
you’re inline with what we are all feeling, however, i find it completely hilarious that the OP and a few of her friends keep downvoting anyone here that disagrees with her post. (like yours, mine, sacs, and anyone else here with a reasonable mindset.)
legal activity! Red Alert!
Not nice! Maybe she thought since it was adjacent to the road, in the parking strip, it was public food? In our neighborhood someone who lives a block or so away was taking avocados from my next door neighbor’s garden, and when he saw her and asked her to stop, she replied that she has lived in the area for 30 years. I guess she thought longevity in the area confers some rights we were unaware of.
if the person taking the avos was in their yard, that’s illegal. if the tree has branches over hanging onto public sidewalk, alley way, road, etc….that is fair game. 100%
This person COULD certainly be down on their luck or facing homelessness, possibly even living in her vehicle. No one knows her motivation, but to pull up half-way on the wrong side of the street to strip off all the artichokes comes across as an act of desperation. At the end of the day, she’s taking food for herself or her family. Taking ALL of it is NOT cool, but if she really needs the artichokes that badly, then she should not be shamed as some might want to do. Going forward, perhaps the gardener could put up a sign stating something like, “Feel Free to Take One or Two, But Do Not Take All of the Artichokes and Leave Some for Others to Enjoy.”
BEES – I fully agree with you.
weird that you would secretly film someone harvesting food on public property….you do realize that the strip of land there is public and not yours, right? If you want to guard your produce, move or replant on your property, then you have a reason to film someone. good luck!
K – I think the OP said it was her landscaper or someone who took the video. But yeah, I agree that posting it here and now TWICE on Nextdoor is just a cruel thing to do.
This could have been done without the video, especially showing the poor kid in the passenger seat, and without labeling her a “thief” and without showing her license plate.
The public shaming in this town is gross.
fully agree here with you Sac. SB has a really crap attitude at times and tends to pearl clutch….like this incident which isn’t even an incident. it’s nothing. hope she enjoyed the vegis honestly. i’m not a fan of them, too much work for very little payoff LOL
There’s an important distinction here between what’s arguably legal and what’s neighborly. The parkway is typically part of the public right-of-way, but adjacent homeowners often plant and maintain it at their own expense. Even if picking from that space is technically allowed (or a gray area), taking artichokes without asking is discourteous and, to many of us, morally wrong. A quick knock on the door or a note goes a long way toward maintaining trust on the block.
As for posting about it: the point is to invite community standards conversations—Was this okay or not? Many here seem to agree it’s “technically legal (sort of) but morally wrong.” The separate question about “shaming” is bigger than this incident and speaks to how society and the internet can function. There’s a difference between documenting behavior to discuss norms and inciting a pile-on against an individual. We can call out the action without dehumanizing the person.
Constructively, clearer norms help everyone: homeowners can add a sign (“Please don’t pick” or “Free to share—take one!”), and neighbors can ask before harvesting. Legal is the floor; courtesy is the ceiling.
2-3 sentences could have described this incident and been sufficient to spur a discussion. Heck, maybe even a blurred snapshot from the video. But to post in multiple places and multiple times a video not only clearly showing the “perp’s” face, but her license plate and the innocent person (appears to be an embarrassed minor) in the passenger seat was too much in my book.
This was not a major crime. People do not need to be on the look out for this person or her kid/grandkid. Shaming like this, over and over, is as unneighborly as taking all the artichokes from pubic property.
Lessons: Don’t harvest all the produce. Don’t plant desirable crops like this in the public ROW, plant them in your yard (which was just a couple feet away) and do NOT shame under the guise of “discussion.”
I hear you on minimizing harm, especially where a minor is visible—blurring faces/plates is a good practice although you’re assuming this is a minor, it’s not clear in the video. That said, this happened in a public right-of-way, where there’s little expectation of privacy, and documenting it once with clear visuals isn’t inherently “shaming”; it’s accountability and evidence that grounds the discussion in facts rather than hearsay. Cross-posting to a couple of community forums to solicit input is also common and not the same as doxxing or inciting a pile-on.
Planting in the parkway doesn’t turn a homeowner’s time and resources into a free-for-all—many cities actively encourage parkway plantings to green neighborhoods. Shifting the burden to “don’t plant desirable crops” lets bad behavior set the rules. A reasonable middle path is: don’t take what isn’t offered (and never take it all), ask when in doubt, and if you post about an incident, focus on the conduct, avoid personal pile-ons. That approach preserves both community standards and basic decency.
Yeah, but as you can tell from the responses, people here want shame. This lady was wrong to do what she did. Does she deserve this level of public shaming? I say no.
Crazy how “controversial” my opinion seems to be here. Then again, that’s how this town is.
i’m kinda stunned on how the reactions are here, i mean i know edhat is a group of cranky old “get off my lawn” people, but this is a bit much even for this crowd. this is nothing more than turning on your neighbor, and that is a freakin’ shame initself.
You agree what she did was wrong, so perhaps a post like this will prevent her from doing something wrong again. I think we’ve exhausted this topic, I see your point and you see mine now let’s enjoy the long weekend.
No, CHEVY, most people think this post is perfectly ok and some on ND think the OP should go further with this.
Yeah, I agree it wasn’t cool to take all the ‘chokes but you don’t get to just shut it down now when so many oppose the POV that plastering video of this woman and her passenger is not right either.
Surprised Edhat has left the headline as well. She is not a “thief.”
Funny that YOU mention that. There are a few but highly vocal folks that live seem to live on social media and like to shame others. I think the vast majority of folks around our community are that way, fortunately.
Nah, BASIC, I only shame those who choose to be bigots.
Gee it would be great to be able to respond.
All this talk about this being “public property” should be tempered. The parkway strip is still the property of the landowner. The city city has an easement for street and sidewalk use, not a right to control it per se. There are in fact laws in the city code that talk about what sort of plantings can be on that land and I think the owner is responsible for maintaining it. All said, however, it is absolutely clear that the home owner had planted it,, maintained it and reasonably expected to harvest the product of that effort. For someone to just come along and grab the fruit of another’s investment and labor is grossly selfish.
Yes, RHS, grossly selfish indeed, but not something that warrants her face, her passenger’s face and license plate being plastered all over local social media, multiple times, just to initiate “discussion.”
I get it, most people on Nextdoor and Edhat thrive on this nosy neighbor stuff, but labeling her a “thief” and posting the video 3 times in 2 days is borderline harassment. Some on ND are even demanding she be found based on her license plate. NONE of this is, as the OP laments, “kind or neighborly.”
hi, actually that is incorrect information and I have looked up the code and frankly i have lived with this same problem myself until i made it a non issue by removing my plants and putting them on my actual property. the parkway strip isn’t part of your property boundary nor is the sidewalk. that belongs to the city. you do have to maintain it, but you do not own it and if you plant on it, it’s at your own risk as that is, and always will be public property. i deal with tourists and farmers market people parking in front of my house constantly. trampling over my flowers and tomato plants. Did i go and film and shame people? NO! I took action, because there is no one to blame other than myself for planting on public property. I even called the PD to ask for advice. I removed it all, replanted on my property and guess what…the problem went away. now i let the strip die each year so it’s just dirt.
The story should be “Public Property Thief Shames Hungry Woman on West Side”.
100%!
I’d be more upset about the a$$backwards garbage parking attempt she made in the middle of the road. Lazy and stupid, but she must like artichokes and they’re right there for the taking on public property,
The owner of the asparagus plant has violated a Santa Barbara city ordinance designating that while it is legal to plant on the PUBLIC parkway, the height of plants can be no taller than 8 inches. FYI.
GT – shhhh! All the fuss buckets here hate inconvenient facts. Shame! Shame! Shame!
HERE IS WHAT THE CITY POSTS ABOUT WHO DOES WHAT TO THIS SPACE:
“Private Property Owner’s Maintenance Responsibilities:
The private property owner is responsible for the vegetation in the public right-of-way (parkway) between the private property owner’s land and the curb/street (unless it involves City-maintained trees), ensuring it is safe, does not block accessible passage on the sidewalk (if there is one), doesn’t obstruct vehicle sight lines and doesn’t present a fire hazard.”
https://santabarbaraca.gov/news/street-and-sidewalk-maintenace-responsibilities
PRETTY CLEAR PEOPLE WANT TO CONTINUE TO FIGHT ABOUT THIS RATHER THAN ACTUALLY BE INFORMED. PROPERTY OWNERS DO HAVE THE RIGHT TO PLANT THIS AREA.
RHS – No one said they don’t have the right to plant there. I think the issue is, it’s not the best place to grow crops since it’s not private property and therefore not protected like crops on private property, which in this case was only 2-3 feet away.
Being responsible for keeping it safe is not the same thing as being able to expect total control as if it were their front yard.
The lady should not have taken all the chokes, bottom line. BUT, it was not something worthy of shaming her and her passenger publicly across multiple sites.
Kids know each other and what their family cars and members look like. Apparently, the kid in the car has already been teased about this since this is all over local media.
I hope you all are happy. Was it worth it?
You’re making a lot of assumptions and creating a false narrative here. There’s no evidence the passenger is a minor and there’s absolutely no evidence the passenger has been teased about this.
NO ANON!!!! Nice galf truth. They can plant there, that wasn’t the argument. The plants shouldn’t be over 8 inches. Here is the actual link to the city document stating so
https://santabarbaraca.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Public%20Works/03%20PWPC%20Handouts/Plants%20for%20Parkways%20-%20handout.pdf
§ 15.20.040Other Plantings or Improvements in Parkway Strips.
It is unlawful to install or plant in a Parkway Strip any of the following without a written permit from the Director: (1) any tree not designated an official tree in the Master Street Tree Plan; (2) any other plant whose ultimate growing height is over eight inches; or (3) any other non-living ground cover. The Parks and Recreation Department shall maintain a list of plant materials which comply with the height requirements of this title.
(Ord. 4245, 1983;
Interesting about the eight inch height limit. A huge percentage of planted parkway strips have much taller plants. Clearly that ordinance has not been enforced at all.
Weird that your “handy man” would try to covertly record this woman, and wouldn’t have just kindly informed her. That’s suspicious to me…js 😏🫡
Not everyone feels comfortable confronting someone with a knife in their hand
Oh please…. 🤣🤣🤣
Right back at ya. You’re taking this whole incident personally and attacking anyone else that has a differing opinion than you. I now understand those who complain about engaging with you on this board.
What is funny are the people getting upset with the actual city ordinance posted pertaining to public parkways. Man, if that were a pop up taco stand they would be losing their minds and citing city code violations.
Artichokes are delicious.
Prepare the artichoke stem: Pull any leaves off the stem, and use a vegetable peeler to peel off the stem’s woody exterior. Use a sharp stainless steel knife to trim off the end of the stem and gently score the trimmed end with an “X” pattern. Rub the stem all over with the cut side of one of the lemon segments to prevent browning.
Prepare the artichoke bud: Cut off the top quarter off the artichoke, about ½ to 1 inch. Rub the cut leaves all over with the lemon. Use kitchen shears to snip off the pointy tips of the remaining leaves.
Steam the artichoke: Fill a large pot with 1 inch of water, and squeeze in any remaining lemon juice. Add the squeezed lemon segments to the pot. Place a steamer basket in the pot, add the artichoke, and bring to a boil. Cover and steam for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the artichoke stem is fork-tender and you can easily peel off the outer leaves.
Remove the choke: Allow the artichoke to cool slightly. Slice it in half lengthwise, and use a small spoon to scoop out the hairy choke.
Serve the artichoke halves with melted butter or another dipping sauce of your choice. To eat, dip the leaves into the sauce and use your teeth to scrape off the meat, discarding the tough, fibrous shell. You can eat the artichoke heart and stem in their entirety.