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A state House candidate from northern Minnesota is being sued in civil court after cutting his neighbor's garage in half.

Roger Weber, a Republican from Nashwauk, faces a lawsuit filed by Mark Beseman of Iron seeking $20,000 in damages to the garage and $20,000 in punitive damages, as well as a small portion of Weber's land.

According to the civil suit, Weber's father owned 40 acres near Nashwauk and in 1978 gave 39 acres to his son. The father kept the house, garage and remaining acre of land until his death in 2012 when it was passed down to his daughter, Ann Anderson, who sold it to Besemann in spring 2013.

Weber said, he told his sister he was going to remove any structures that sat on his side of the property line. Weber's attorney, Brian Bengtson, didn't immediately return a call seeking comment.

The suit is the result of a simmering property dispute that has stretched on for more than a year. Besemann filed the initial complaint in September 2013 after authorities in Itasca County declined to investigate the matter.

Weber faces incumbent DFLer Carly Melin in the Nov. 4 general election. It's a rematch of the 2012 race where Melin coasted to victory, capturing 70 percent of the vote.

Judge Lois Lang is scheduled to hear the case Itasca County District Court on December 15, more than a month after Election Day.

The Republican Party of Minnesota did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the case.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.