Cody and Hope Etherton have filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Rainsville. The suit alleges a conspiracy to steal property.

According to the suit:

• city zoning officer Richard Gibson applied excessive restrictions in order to be able to sell the farm
• the first  prospective buyer is related to Gibson and the mortgage lender
• road blocks were established in order to keep two other potential buyers out
• if the property goes in foreclosure, the original prospective buyer could purchase the property at a cheaper price

The Etherton's believe the farm is under a grandfather clause that allows them to farm chickens inside the city, but that Gibson required potential buyers to receive the neighbors permission to continue farming and that new owners would not be allowed to build new chicken houses or renovate the current ones.

The city council will meet in executive session Wednesday afternoon at 4:00 PM.