During a Fox News appearance on Monday, a Florida sheriff boasted about giving squatters a “one-way ride” to the county jail as squatting fears spread across the country.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill, HB 621, last Wednesday preventing a squatter takeover of homes in the state.
Squatters often target abandoned or unoccupied properties, taking advantage of their owners’ absence or neglect. They may occupy these properties, make necessary repairs, and even sell them without the rightful owner’s knowledge or consent.
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During an appearance on Monday with “Fox and Friends,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said squatters are assured a “one-way ride to the county jail.”
“We have people that want to move in to vacate houses. Sometimes they try to do that with a dummied-up contract, and what they are doing is trespassing; they have broken into somebody’s house,” Judd said. “There are many jurisdictions across the state and across the nation that say, oh, it’s civil. So now, all of a sudden, these free-loaders are in your house for months while it works its way through the civil process.”
“Well, the state of Florida made that abundantly clear through our Governor DeSantis, who we think is the greatest guy ever, and our Legislature, they said no, we are going to make that a criminal event,” Judd continued. “Well, in Polk County, it was already a criminal event. We never had that problem because we go to the house, we determine well, the real owner doesn’t know who these people are entered into no contract. We load them up and give them a one-way ride to the county jail. It’s just that simple. You don’t have to bog it down in court. Just do what’s right.”
“It’s always been that way in this County; they pop-smoke on us and leave whenever they get out of jail, and they’re gone. I mean, they’re gone fast because we don’t put up with it, and that’s the bottom line, Lawrence, across this nation. If you get tired of it, do something about it,” continued Judd.
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“You don’t have to make it a civil deal when somebody breaks into your home when you are in it at the time. It may be up for sale, you may have gone on a cruise around the world, for whatever reason your property is empty,” Judd said. “People don’t have the right to move in, turn the electricity on, change the locks and claim it as theirs. It’s not difficult. It’s burglary. It’s theft of your property. It’s trespassing. Just use your current laws and go arrest them and lock them up.”
House Bill 621 will allow a Florida homeowner to quickly and legally remove a squatter from a property, increasing criminal penalties for squatting.
In Florida, reclaiming your home from squatters will be quick and simple, avoiding costly delays, litigation, and missed rents.
HB 621 also creates harsh penalties for those engaged in squatting and for those who encourage squatting and teach others the scam. The bill makes it:
- A first-degree misdemeanor for making a false statement in writing to obtain real property or for knowingly and willfully presenting a falsified document conveying property rights;
- A second-degree felony for any person who unlawfully occupies or trespasses in a residential dwelling and who intentionally causes $1,000 or more in damages; and
- A first-degree felony for knowingly advertising the sale or rent of a residential property without legal authority or ownership.
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“The squatter scam ends today. With my signature on this piece of legislation, the State of Florida will be better off for it,” said DeSantis last Wednesday.
“Florida is once again leading the nation, this time in securing our state against squatters,” said Attorney General Ashley Moody. “Biden has allowed millions of illegal immigrants to flood across the border. After video evidence of their plan to take over homes emerged, we’re ensuring Floridians are protected from this egregious and brazen scheme. I’m grateful to Governor DeSantis for signing this important legislation into law, and to Representative Kevin Steele for carrying this bill through Session.”
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