By Glenn Harbison
glenn@thenewsobserver.com
Fannin County landowners who find unwanted guests camping on their property now have a quick and easy way to have them removed.
Sheriff Dane Kirby explained the new law that is already in effect under House Bill 1017. Instead of the lengthy eviction process, these unwanted guests can often be removed immediately.
The sheriff stressed the new law does not apply to the landlord/tenant laws that require normal eviction procedures, but to those situations where someone, most often who is homeless, has set up camp on someone’s property.
The responsibility starts with the landowner who is required to fill out an affidavit stating no one has permission to be on the property and that he or she wants them to leave.
Deputies will then be sent to write a citation to the offender. If the offender feels they have a claim or right to be on the property, they are given an affidavit they must fill out and return to Magistrate Court within three days and a prompt hearing will be scheduled.
If the offender does not have authority to be on the property, they can be arrested immediately and taken before the magistrate judge.
Or they can agree to leave, in which case their option will be to “pack up and get out,” Kirby said.
At that point, it will be up to the discretion of the deputy as to whether or not to pursue the citation against the offender.
Kirby said instances of people illegally camping on others’ property is something “we’ve seen some problems with in Fannin County.” Until now, the situation was something, “We could not make an arrest for,” the sheriff said. With this change, “If the landowner wants something done, now they have a much better option than the often lengthy eviction process.”
Kirby said the bill was written to target outbreaks, especially in Metro Atlanta, where squatters move into people’s homes while they are away and then won’t leave, or create fake documents to try and take over a residence.
“Thankfully, it helps us with our situations right here at home,” Kirby said.