Meza

On July 29, 1987, plaintiff and respondent, Arciero Ranches (Arciero) filed a verified complaint alleging that defendants and appellants Amador Meza, Raquel Meza, and Does 1 through 100 had willfully trespassed, and would continue to trespass, on a certain road (the farm road) located on the Brothers Ranch in Kern County and owned by Arciero. Arciero sought, inter alia, a permanent injunction enjoining each defendant from entering the Brothers Ranch or removing any barriers located thereon. Arciero also sought both compensatory and exemplary damages. On August 19, 1987, the complaint was amended to include Pedro Meza as a defendant.

Defendants and appellants (the Mezas) filed their answer to the complaint on March 17, 1988. In it, they generally and specifically denied the allegations contained in the complaint and, as affirmative defenses, asserted that they had obtained a prescriptive easement which allowed them to travel on the farm road and further, that Arciero’s claim was time-barred under Code of Civil Procedure sections 318, 319, and 320.

The Mezas also filed a cross-complaint alleging that they had obtained a prescriptive easement in the roadway and that…