In Kentucky, politicians are preparing to vote on a law that would authorize the use of force against unhoused people who are found to be camping on private property.

In Kentucky, politicians are preparing to vote on a law that would authorize the use of force against unhoused people who are found to be camping on private property.

Republican politicians in Kentucky are rallying behind a new bill that would authorize the use of force—and potentially deadly force—against unhoused people who are found to be camping on private property. The bill would also criminalize unsanctioned homeless encampments and restrict cities and towns from preempting state laws.

The bill, known as the “Safer Kentucky Act,” or HB5, would target homelessness, drug possession and mental illness by drastically increasing criminal penalties for a range of offenses. Introduced last week by Republican state representative Jared Bauman, it already has 52 sponsors in Kentucky’s House of Representatives. A vote is scheduled for this week.

Advocates are most alarmed by one aspect of the “Safer Kentucky Act” in particular: an anti-homeless provision that would authorize violence by property owners on people camping on their property. The bill says the use of force is “justifiable” if a defendant believes that criminal trespass, robbery or “unlawful camping” is occurring on their property.

  • AnneBonny@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    3·
    10 months ago

    The article says:
    The bill says the use of force is “justifiable” if a defendant believes that criminal trespass, robbery or “unlawful camping” is occurring on their property.

    The law says:

    2 (1) The use of physical force by a defendant upon another person is justifiable when the
    3 defendant believes that such force is immediately necessary to prevent:
    …
    12 (c) The commission of unlawful camping in violation of Section 17 of this Act,
    13 when the offense is occurring on property owned or leased by the defendant,
    14 the individual engaged in unlawful camping has been told to cease, and the
    15 individual committing the offense has used force or threatened to use force
    16 against the defendant.

    Not mentioning that force is not authorized unless the person camping unlawfully has either used force or threatened to use force already is a glaring omission.