The debate around squatters rights is a contentious one, with strong feelings on both sides.
But one thing is for certain - disputing a squatter's right to stay in a residence can be a long and arduous process.
Well, one woman in Detroit had quite the challenge on her hands when a squatter took up residence in her house and refused to leave.
Fortunately for her, a local TV reporter came to the rescue.
Advert
Back in 2014, Sarah Hamilton-Gilmer was wanting to sell a house that she had previously bought in the Michigan city.
Unfortunately for her, a squatter called Lynn Arthur Williams Jr took up residence and refused to budge.
Police were called to intervene, but Lynn claimed that Gilmer had tried to run her over with a car, so Gilmer was put in jail.
Enter Fox News reporter Charlie LeDuff.
LeDuff posed as a prospective squatter and showed up to the residence, in possession of a set of keys and the deed to the house.
As Lynn appeared on the doorstep, LeDuff announced: "I'm coming to move in! I got the keys."
Lynn refused to allow entry though, saying: "Let you into your house? This is Lynn Williams' house!"
Despite this, LeDuff kept persisting and pushed to gain entry to his new crib.
"It doesn't say Lynn Williams on here," LeDuff responded, as he unveiled the deed.
Lynn replied: "Of course it doesn't, because she [Gilmer] took my paperwork and everybody else know it."
LeDuff posed a hypothetical to Lynn and questioned whether it'd be right for her to move into his house if he'd left it for a month.
"I'm not the only one that is squatting," Lynn responded, "There's a lot of other people on the block, if you want to be technical.
"A lot of people encouraged me to do what I'm doing now."
The pair went on a walk of the property, at which point LeDuff questioned how the house was being powered.
Despite Lynn's protests that it was 'legit', it appeared that she was, in fact, just stealing from a neighbour with a wire running from their home.
Soon, police arrived and Lynn was asked to produce proof that she owned the house.
But all she could provide was a letter from the postal service, which LeDuff claimed 'didn't count'.
In the end, Lynn ended up being handcuffed and placed in the back of the police car.
And it turned out that she was on probation for felonious assault with a deadly weapon, and squatting in another person's house broke the rules of said probation.
This is a reverse Uno if I ever saw one!
Topics: US News
Ben Thompson