(The Center Square) — Amid an ongoing fight to end trespassing and squatters in the Highland area, Caddo Commissioner John-Paul Young has filed a declaratory judgment against Mayor Tom Arceneaux.
Young is not the only Highland resident fighting for laws to be enforced or clarified. Charlotte Russel, president of the Highland Neighborhood Association, presented a petition at the administrative conference meeting earlier this week with 150-200 signatures calling for the enforcement of the trespassing and blight laws.
The suit seeks clarification on the current laws in place for squatters and trespassers to which Arceneaux released a memorandum addressing shortly after.
The declaratory judgment was filed on Feb. 26 and assigned to Judge Mike Pitman as Young seeks an interpretation of the current laws concerning squatters, trespassers, and vacant properties in the city.
While the lawsuit was assigned to Pitman, the situation has escalated further. Now, after all Caddo District Judges have declined to hear the case, Chief Judge Ramona Emanuel must request the state Supreme Court to appoint a judge.
“My neighborhood is getting burned down,” said Young in the Feb. 18 Caddo Commission Long Range Planning meeting. “There’s a lot of vacant houses in my neighborhood. Meth users are going into vacant houses and starting fires when it’s cold and not when it’s cold. The houses sometimes get burned repeatedly.”
This was one of many times Young has spoken up against a new property standards ordinance introduced. According to the new ordinance, to arrest a trespasser, the vacant property must not have a water connection.
“We don’t want to turn off our water just to have somebody removed from our house,” argued Young, referring to vacant historic homes in the Highland neighborhood that he and another council member own.
On March 3, Arceneaux released a memorandum titled “Understanding Louisiana Trespassing Laws and Law Enforcement Authority on Private Property.”
“With respect to ‘squatters’ the statute requires that a ‘lawful possessor’ give verbal or written notice to the occupant to vacate or that a lawful possessor post conspicuous signage advising that (a) the property is privately owned, and (b) unlawful trespass is prohibited,” the memo reads. “The proposed ordinance will make it unlawful to occupy structure that has defined dilapidated characteristics, such as holes in the roof, or that there not be an active water account and service to the structure.”
According to recent reports, a firefighter was injured on the scene of a fire at a vacant property in the city. Officials are split on how to handle the situation. Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith is concerned with profiling issues if arrests are made on everybody trespassing.
“In public service, we have to be the extreme, neutral, unbiased party. By classifying or qualifying people as a squatter or vagrant, you’re asking us to profile a person because of their economic status or their condition, which in my opinion is totally illegal,” said Chief Wayne at a recent Property Standards meeting.
Wayne supports the new ordinance, arguing it will give the department the right to take action based on the condition of the home, not the condition of the person trespassing.
No updates have been given on Young’s lawsuit against Arceneaux, but he and other residents of the Highland neighborhood are actively pursuing changes on the issue.
