Kelo Backlash Could Lead to Restoration of Property Rights Lost to Smart Growth and Eminent Domain Abuses by Ronald D. Utt, Ph.D. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor was right when she wrote in her dissent to Kelo vs. City of New London that now “the specter of condemnation hangs over all property.”[1] She was also quite correct to note that the decision undermines an important Constitutional protection that all Americans had taken for granted over the past two centuries. When the 13 states voted to adopt the Constitution in 1791, they appended to the original document ten amendments guaranteeing...