This week's award for dumbest place in America goes to: Oak Park, Michigan

A Michigan homeowner is facing a jury trial and potential jail time for planting a vegetable garden. This act is apparently in violation of city code, which dictates that only "suitable materials" be used in all unpaved portions of front yards.

Julie Bass, an Oak Park, Michigan homeowner and mother-of-six, decided to plant a vegetable garden in her front yard so that she could save money by growing her own organic food. She filled five large planter boxes with cabbages, cucumbers, tomatoes, herbs and other edible vegetation.

While many neighbors enjoyed the fruits of her labour, others complained. Seeing how city code requires homeowners to plant shrubbery, grass, ground cover, and "suitable materials" in all unpaved portions of front yards, city code enforcement officials told Mrs. Bass to squash the project or face a ticket.

According to Oak Park City Planner Kevin Rulkowski, the word "suitable" means "common," and vegetable gardens in front yards in Mrs. Bass's community are not common, so Mrs. Bass is in violation of the code.

Mrs. Bass now faces a trial by jury and up to 93 days of jail time.

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