Florida Sheriff Grady Judd blasts squatters as 'dopers and freeloaders,' warns they're in for a 'one-way ride to the county jail'



No-nonsense Florida Sheriff Grady Judd blasted home squatters as a "bunch of dopers and freeloaders" and warned the hated bunch that if they pull their antics down his way, they're in for a "one-way ride to the county jail."

Judd — who heads up the sheriff's office in Polk County — sent his message Monday morning during an interview with Fox News' Lawrence Jones in the wake of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis last week signing a bill that squashes squatters:

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In fact, Judd told Jones that past police action in Polk County already had been making life difficult for squatters: "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 'em up, give 'em 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.”

Judd added to Jones that "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." Judd also said crime is at a 50-year low in Polk.

When Jones asked Judd if he had advice for homeowners elsewhere in the U.S. to avert what's become a headline-grabbing "crisis" as of late, the sheriff didn't mince words.

“You don’t have to make it a civil deal. When somebody breaks into your home, whether you're 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's empty. People don’t have the right to move in, turn the electricity on, change the locks, and claim it as theirs," Judd said. "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 'em up."

For homeowners who want compensation for money they've spent removing squatters, Judd acknowledged that's much tougher: "You can sue them, but you can't get blood out of a turnip. They don't have anything. What little money they have they stick up their nose or in their veins. They're just a bunch of dopers and freeloaders. We call 'em squatters."

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Homeowners have had enough

As readers of Blaze News know by now, police recently arrested the owner of a $1 million home in New York City for changing the locks on a squatter and charged her with unlawful eviction.

Outrage over the incident apparently led a pair of men soon after to show up at the home "looking to get this guy out."

Amid all that, a Venezuelan immigrant created a viral video in which he encouraged illegal aliens to find vacant homes and become squatters: "I have thought about invading a house in the United States. I found out that there is a law that says that if a house is not inhabited, we can seize it."

Also, an Atlanta man had been fighting for years to move dozens of squatters off his property, spent thousands on cleanup, and actually was sued for $190,000.

In addition, a crew known as the "Squatter Squad" gained widespread attention after they were depicted in a recent video confronting a dozen squatters in one Los Angeles-area home, kicking in a door, and sending the lot of them packing.

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Male gets angry at speeding neighbors, throws beer can at them — and then grabs his AR-15 and fires shots, sheriff says



A male got angry at speeding neighbors and threw a beer can at them — and then topped that off by grabbing his AR-15 rifle and firing shots, according to Grady Judd, sheriff of Polk County, Florida.

What are the details?

"I want to tell you a story that you're just not gonna believe," Judd said in a video posted on the sheriff's office Facebook page. "Now, we all have complaints about people speeding down the roads, speeding through our neighborhoods. Ol' Eric Proctor took his conduct to the extreme."

Judd said Proctor claimed neighbors were speeding down his street and threw a beer can at them in retaliation.

After confronting them about their speeding, Judd said Proctor grabbed his AR-15 rifle and fired three shots — one in the air and two in the ground.

Judd said the neighbors called police for help, but Proctor denied their claims — except that surveillance video shows Proctor going into his house, exiting with the rifle, and going back into the house with the rifle.

What happened next?

Proctor, 35, was arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and two counts of throwing a deadly missile as well as discharging a firearm in public and tampering with evidence following Wednesday's incident in Lakewood, WOFL-TV reported, citing an arrest affidavit.

Proctor was soon released from Polk County Jail after posting a $26,000 bond, the station noted, citing arrest records.

"Hey, if you're that stirred up, just call us," Judd added in the sheriff's office video. "We'll deal with it, and you won't end up in jail charged with a felony."

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Florida sheriff tells homeowners how to handle looters: 'Shoot him so he looks like grated cheese'



A Florida sheriff gave advice to homeowners on how to handle looters in the state: "Shoot him so he looks like grated cheese."

Hurricane Ian ravaged the west coast of Florida last week. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis delivered an unflinching warning to criminals in the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Ian: "Don't even think about looting."

"The other thing we’re concerned about, particularly in those areas that were really hard hit, is we want to make sure we’re maintaining law and order," DeSantis explained. "Don’t even think about looting. Don’t even think about taking advantage of people in this vulnerable situation."

"I can tell you, in the state of Florida, you never know what may be lurking behind somebody’s home," DeSantis warned. "I would not want to chance that if I were you, given that we're a Second Amendment state."

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd Grady issued an even more imposing warning to criminals considering looting. During an appearance on "Fox & Friends," Grady commented on the cases of criminals being arrested for looting in the areas obliterated by the Category 4 hurricane.

"People have a right to be safe in their homes. They have a right to their property, to be safe even when part of their home maybe torn away," Judd said on Friday. “And these looters, that’s unacceptable. Absolutely unacceptable."

Grady advised Florida homeowners, "I would highly suggest that if a looter breaks into your home, comes into your home while you’re there to steal stuff that you take your gun and you shoot him. You shoot him so he looks like grated cheese because you know what? That’s one looter that will not break into anyone else’s home and take advantage of them when they’re the most vulnerable and the most weak."

Grady said that law enforcement and the community are "all gonna come together" during catastrophes like hurricanes.

"The community is gonna come together, and if there are looters that think they’re gonna take care of these people, they may breaking it, but they should be carried out in a pine box because that is unacceptable, that cuts against all laws and all reality," he exclaimed. "You have a right, and your property has a right to be safe and secure in your home, what’s left of it."

\u201cPolk County Sheriff:\n\n"I would highly suggest that if a looter breaks into your home ... to steal stuff, that you take your gun and you shoot him \u2026 so that he looks like grated cheese."\u201d
— The Post Millennial (@The Post Millennial) 1665170608

This isn't the first time the outspoken sheriff has issued a forceful warning to looters.

During the racial riots of the summer of 2020 sparked by the death of George Floyd, Sheriff Grady sternly warned criminals not to loot in the county east of Tampa.

"Let there be no misunderstanding, if you come here to riot, to loot, to injure people, we're going to lock you up in the county jail," Judd said in June 2020. "We are going to hunt you down and lock you up if you engage in any criminal conduct."

“I would tell them, if you value your life, they probably shouldn’t do that in Polk County. Because the people of Polk County like guns, they have guns, I encourage them to own guns, and they’re going to be in their homes tonight with their guns loaded, and if you try to break into their homes to steal, to set fires, I’m highly recommending they blow you back out of the house with their guns. So, leave the community alone,” the sheriff said.

In December 2021, Grady praised a Florida resident who defended his house from a home invasion.

"The homeowner did exactly what he should have," Judd noted of the resident in Lakeland. "He had a gun, he knew how to use it, it was loaded, and he shot him a lot. He gave him an early Christmas present. Only Santa Claus gets to come in your house — and Santa Claus is invited."

Black Lives Matter angry over deputy using Taser on 15-year-old male. Cops say teen was beating up his pregnant girlfriend, physically threatening deputy.



Two Florida civil rights groups, including Black Lives Matter, are calling for an independent investigation after a female Polk County Sheriff's deputy used a Taser on a 15-year-old male during a domestic disturbance at a Davenport motel, WTVT-TV reported.

What are the details?

The deputy was trying to get the teen under control after detectives said he beat, shoved, and bit his 7-months-pregnant girlfriend, the sheriff's office told WTVT, adding that investigators said the pair was arguing over a cell phone during the July 8 incident. WTVT added in its video broadcast that the girlfriend is 19.

After getting hit with the Taser, investigators said the male teen continued to resist arrest, the station said.

Outspoken Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said during a Wednesday news conference that when Sgt. Shanon Gaylord arrived at the chaotic scene, the male teen was uncooperative when she tried to put him in handcuffs, WTVT reported. Judd added that when the 15-year-old male threatened three times to punch his deputy — and that he's bigger than her — the deputy used her Taser, the station added.

Image source: WTVT-TV video screenshot

In fact, Judd said his sergeant used great restraint during the incident, and he would have tased the 15-year-old long before she did, WTVT said.

However, the Poor & Minority Justice Association and Black Lives Matter Restoration Polk accused the sheriff's office of excessive force and unjust charges in the incident, the station said, and said the the teen was suffering a mental breakdown stemming from a developmental disability.

What's more, the groups argued that cellphone video recorded by the teen's mother proves he wasn't a threat at the time he was tased, WTVT noted.

"Actions taken by Sgt. Gaylord [were] unjustified and unlawful," the organizers said in a joint news release, the station reported, adding that that groups also claim the pregnant girlfriend denied allegations in the arrest affidavit.

What does the arrest affidavit say?

Here's the arrest affidavit in part via WTVT; the teen suspect's name has been removed:

On 07/08/22 the suspect and victim were in an argument over a cell phone. The suspect took the phone from the victim and threw it to the ground, breaking it. The suspect then pushed the victim with his hands an undetermined number of times. The suspect then pushed the victim up against the wall with this hand (unknown right or left) by the victim's neck. The victim stated she was able to free herself and the suspect's actions did not impede her normal flow of breathing.

The suspect slapped the victim an undetermined number of times in the face and chest. The suspect bit the victim in the upper right back just below the shoulder blade leaving a bite mark. The suspect grabbed the victim by her hair and pushed her against a wall. The victim is seven (7) months pregnant. The suspect admitted to having prior knowledge of this.

PCSO Sgt. Gaylord #7195S arrived on scene first and observed the suspect holding the victim by her hair and the victim appeared to be trying to get the suspect off of her. (It should be noted Sgt. Gaylord was wearing her agency-issued class B uniform along with agency-issued equipment while displaying (2) two agency patches on her right and left shoulder as well as her agency-issued five-point star on the upper left side of her chest which reads "Sergeant Polk County Sheriff's Office"). Sgt. Gaylord identified herself as "Sheriff's Office" while exiting her vehicle and gave the suspect multiple commands to release the victim and to "separate."

Due to the suspect not complying with the lawful commands given, Sgt. Gaylord then pushed the suspect on his back separating the two allowing her to get in between both parties. The suspect continued to ignore lawful commands given by Sgt. Gaylord to which she then drew her agency Taser and armed it.

At this time the suspect began to yell "Tase me, f----- Tase me." Sgt. Gaylord continued to give the suspect lawful commands to get on the ground. The suspect continued to defy lawful orders and turned his back away from Sgt. Gaylord, to which she then grabbed the suspect's left arm with her left hand while holding her Taser in her right hand.

The suspect then grabbed Sgt. Gaylord's left hand with his right hand and attempt to remove her grip. Sgt. Gaylord then gave the suspect lawful command to "not touch her" to which the suspect replied, "don't f------ touch me then." Sgt. Gaylord attempted to place the suspect's left hand behind his back to which the suspect then tensed up his left arm.

Sgt. Gaylord was able to maneuver the suspect up against the window and was able to pull his left hand behind his back. Sgt. Gaylord gave the suspect multiple commands for him to place his other hand behind his back to which he replied "I ain't doing s---."

The suspect was able to get his body off of the window while Sgt. Gaylord had his left wrist behind his back. The suspect then stated to Sgt. Gaylord, "I'm going to swing on her" and then stated to her on a more aggressive voice for second time, "I'm going to f------ swing on her."

Due to the suspect being larger than Sgt. Gaylord, the suspect's actions and attitudes, the suspect actively resisting, and the suspect threatening to do bodily harm against Sgt. Gaylord, this placed Sgt. Gaylord in fear and cause[d] her to believe that danger was imminent.

Therefore, Sgt. Gaylord disengaged her grip from the suspect's wrist and deployed her agency Taser which made a positive connection in the suspect's mid to lower back effectively incapacitating him for approximately (5) five seconds, the desired effect was achieved, and the suspect fell to the ground. Upon additional units arriving on scene, the suspect's hands were placed behind his back.

The station added that according to the affidavit, the teen stated to Sgt. Gaylord after being placed in handcuffs, "Take these cuffs off, so I can beat this b----'s a--."

Anything else?

WTVT said the teen faces charges of battery on a pregnant individual, assault on a law enforcement officer, battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting without violence, and resisting with violence. The station added that he has no prior convictions for battery or assault.

Here's a longer video of the encounter:

(H/T: The Police Tribune)