A Georgia homeowner has been jailed after attempting to return to his Livingston Drive home several weeks ago, which had been occupied by alleged squatters.
Clayton County homeowner Loretha Hale was charged with misdemeanor counts of trespassing and terroristic threats after the Dec. 9 incident, WSB-TV reported It noted Friday that the alleged squatters were not charged in the incident.
Hale said she called police in August when she spotted what she believed to be a squatter in her home and reported the person, identified as Sachemeia Johnson, to police under the Georgia Squatter Reform Act.
fox 5 reported In May, “Late last month, Gov. Brian Kemp signed the Georgia Squatter Reform Act into law, requiring homeowners, not residents, and in some cases entire families, to move into a property, change the locks, or refuse to be evicted.'' protected from
According to a WSB-TV article, Clayton County Magistrate Court Judge Latrevia Lattes Johnson ruled that Johnson was not a squatter due to her relationship with the partner of a previously evicted tenant. This ruling triggered a legal battle.
A final judgment was then entered in Hale's favor, and Hale considered Johnson evicted from the premises. However, when Ms Hale arrived to clean up the house, she claimed the woman had broken the lock.
body camera footage show On December 9th, Hale was sitting in the back seat of a police car:
According to a report from WSB-TV:
In an incident report, responding agents wrote that Hale “performed an unlawful eviction and forcibly removed Ms. Johnson's belongings.”
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Officers at the scene confirmed to court officials that Hale did not have a signed warrant of possession to legally evict the tenant.
Ms Hale said she was waiting for the magistrate to sign the document.
“There's something inherently wrong with this photo when I see that woman go into my mother's house while I'm in my patrol car. There's something inherently wrong with this photo.” she said.
During the Dec. 9 incident, a police officer can be heard on his body camera telling Hale to look at the situation from the perspective of the alleged squatter, saying: Not everyone is as blessed with a bed as you are. All the little things, like the bed in the house, the food in the kitchen. ”
A similar incident occurred in March with a homeowner in New York City. arrested According to good morning america:
Breitbart News reported in May that police in South Fulton, Georgia, detained six squatters at a home in the area for their involvement in a neighbor's stolen car.
