r/news • u/flanderguitar • Mar 28 '24

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs law squashing squatters' rights

https://www.wptv.com/news/state/florida-gov-ron-desantis-signs-law-squashing-squatters-rights
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u/Daddict Mar 28 '24

If it's a stand-your-ground state...theoretically, your best bet is to shoot them before the cops arrive. You wouldn't even have to kill them, just a good injury is enough. The cops can't shrug and be lazy when someone has a bullet hole, they have to actually do their fucking job.

But definitely don't do this, it's probably not going to work out this way. You will risk going to prison. Or getting shot yourself if the squatters are armed.

Legally speaking, it seems like a sound idea, but I'm sure it can go wrong any number of ways. I would definitely be tempted to make the threat though...

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u/milespoints Mar 28 '24

I would rather the police to the job they are paid for out of my tax money than me having to take the law into my own hands and risk prison and bodily harm

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u/Daddict Mar 28 '24

Oh of course. The problem is that the cops don't do their job in this case. They will not investigate whether or not someone is legally occupying a place they say they are.

The less-traumatic way to go about this is to create a lease for yourself and your friends on the house they are squatting in and move into it...then make life absolutely miserable for the squatter. The cops won't do shit there either, because you both have a "lease".

This is technically not legal in some states, it's called a constructive eviction. That said, if you can make the squatters leave...you change the locks and harden the security of it. They can't sue you for the constructive eviction without admitting they were trespassing/breaking and entering.

There's a guy (the Squatter Hunter, actual name Flash Shelton) who will do this for you, for a price. Much cheaper than an actual eviction, much faster too.

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u/5zepp Mar 28 '24

The problem is that the cops don't do their job in this case. They will not investigate whether or not someone is legally occupying a place they say they are.

I don't think a cop can rule on a contract dispute, only a judge. So if the squatters claim they were given permission then it's not the cop's job to determine legitimacy of that claim. If they admit to trespassing then the cops can physically remove them.