Retired Pediatrician Sues Army Corps Over Illegal Land Grab

Lake Worth, FL; July 7, 2025: A retired pediatrician is suing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over its continued control of nearly half of her five-acre homestead. Dr. Sedigheh Zolfaghari says the Army Corps is violating her rights by enforcing an agreement based on regulations the Supreme Court has since declared unconstitutional.

“The government cannot hold property owners to agreements that are based on an unlawful application of the Clean Water Act,” said David McDonald, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation. “Dr. Zolfaghari was strong-armed into surrendering property rights that the Corps had no authority to demand, and we are confident the Supreme Court’s Sackett decision will prevent such abuses from continuing.”

In 2008, Dr. Zolfaghari sought a permit to build a guest house, which the Army Corps approved only if she agreed to permanently maintain two acres of her land, claiming they were regulated wetlands. This agreement was made under threat of severe fines and potential imprisonment. However, the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling in Sackett v. EPA clarified that the Clean Water Act’s reach is limited to navigable waters and wetlands with a direct surface connection. Dr. Zolfaghari’s property does not meet these criteria.

Upon learning of the Sackett II decision, Dr. Zolfaghari requested the Corps reconsider, but the agency refused. Dr. Zolfaghari’s federal lawsuit seeks to restore her property rights and ensure federal agencies cannot use past overreach to justify continued unlawful control.

The case is Zolfaghari v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.