OK, so there was a 40' elm tree in my backyard... quite dead, I can
assure you.

No leaves on any branches for 2 years.

So I had it removed.

Opened my mail today to find a ticket for $250 from the H.A. for not
asking permission before I cut it down.

And, although there are a few extenuating circumstances that would
probably cause the DA to not prosecute if this were Law and Order - my
H.A. seems to be particularly stupid with respect to common sense if
they can squeeze someone for $$$.

So - I ask you. Is a dead tree still a tree, or is it merely a big
stick of decaying wood upended in the dirt?

At what point does a tree cease to become a tree, and become firewood?