Entitled "Friend" Turns Into a Squatter and Instantly Regrets It

Added: 2026-05-13

[00:00:00]cuz she was supposed to been uh gave back my key.

[00:00:03]>> So, she used to live here.

[00:00:05]>> No, she doesn't live there at all. I left on Monday and um I left my key with her so she could return it.

[00:00:12]>> Okay.

[00:00:13]>> Um but she never returned it.

[00:00:16]>> You don't understand. You're not in control here. Okay.

[00:00:19]>> You're here illegally. Okay.

[00:00:21]>> My daughter, >> you are here illegally.

[00:00:23]>> If you give me the key, >> it's over here.

[00:00:25]>> Identify yourself. You're free to leave.

[00:00:27]If you're refusing to give me the key, >> you're gonna go to jail.

[00:00:30]>> Whatever you trying to charge me with go to jail.

[00:00:38]>> Go to jail cuz I won't be.

[00:00:40]>> It's absolutely right. It's that simple.

[00:00:44]>> A homeowner trusts someone with her house key while she's on vacation. That single decision puts police on her doorstep and turns of body cam footage into a lesson the courts have argued about for decades. This analysis examines a Florida trespassing arrest under three independent legal frameworks. Fourth Amendment seizure doctrine, the use of force standard, and Florida's resisting arrest statute. A single encounter can satisfy or fail under any one of them.

[00:01:10]>> If you give me the key, you're free to leave. If you're refusing to give me the key, you're going to go to jail.

[00:01:15]>> It's over there.

[00:01:15]>> Go get it.

[00:01:16]>> Ma'am, you're not free to leave.

[00:01:17]>> AM I LEAVING?

[00:01:24]HEY, IT'S POLICE DEPARTMENT.

[00:01:26]>> HEY, can you hear me?

[00:01:27]>> Hey. Yeah, I'm here on the camera. This is the owner.

[00:01:30]>> Okay.

[00:01:30]>> Uh, is the white car there?

[00:01:32]>> Uh, white Volkswagen. Yes. No one's answering the door.

[00:01:35]>> Yeah, that's their car though.

[00:01:37]>> Okay. Hey, can you call me and give me a little info about what's going on here?

[00:01:41]>> Okay.

[00:01:41]>> Hey, is this Miss Nelson?

[00:01:44]>> Yes.

[00:01:44]>> Hey, this is Officer Johnson.

[00:01:47]>> Hi, Mr. I'm saying. Uh yeah, that that person >> who's uh in there is um not supposed to be there. It's trespassing.

[00:01:56]>> So well, give me some back story on what's what's the what's the issue? How why is she here and who is she? And I understand she's a friend or something, but >> Yeah. Yeah. So she was supposed to been uh gave back my key.

[00:02:08]>> So she used to live here.

[00:02:10]>> No, she doesn't live there at all. I left on Monday and um I left my key with her so she could return it.

[00:02:17]>> Okay.

[00:02:18]>> Um but she never returned it.

[00:02:20]>> So she doesn't live here. Why is she here now?

[00:02:23]>> That That's what I'm saying. That's why I'm calling for trespassing.

[00:02:26]>> Okay. Who drives the black uh Infinity SUV?

[00:02:29]>> Honda Nelson. That's That's the owner of the house. My >> Are they here too or No, >> no. No. Yeah, that car is not there.

[00:02:36]>> So the only person here is supposed to be Liberty or the only person here is Liberty.

[00:02:40]>> Yeah. And she's not supposed to be staying here. She's just supposed to return your key.

[00:02:46]>> Right. Right.

[00:02:47]>> Okay.

[00:02:48]>> But I've been away. I've been away. I've been looking at my camera and she's been in and out and and No, that can't happen.

[00:02:54]>> Okay. So, you're just wanting the key back and you want her gone?

[00:02:58]>> Yeah. Get her key.

[00:03:00]>> She doesn't have any rights here.

[00:03:02]>> No, at all.

[00:03:04]>> She's never lived here. She doesn't have any property here or anything like that?

[00:03:07]>> No.

[00:03:09]>> All right. All right, let me see if I can uh get her to answer the door. I've knocked, but nobody's answering. So, >> yeah, she's she's texting me now, so I don't know why why she's not coming.

[00:03:16]>> Well, tell her to come outside and talk to me.

[00:03:21]Liberty, it's the police department.

[00:03:22]Come out here and talk to me. Huh?

[00:03:26]>> I didn't call it out. I just put it in my computer. Yo, Liberty, come out here and talk to me. Hey, she's not answering our phone. Um, where where are you at?

[00:03:35]Is there any way you can come here and we can open this door or?

[00:03:40]>> Yeah, the uh the extra key is um >> it's actually in Perry. I have my mother on the way over there though.

[00:03:48]>> Okay.

[00:03:49]>> Does she have a spare key by chance?

[00:03:52]>> No.

[00:03:53]>> Yeah. So, I'm going to try to call Libby right now.

[00:03:55]>> Yeah. Just I mean tell her if she's inside to come out, we she's not in trouble. We just got to get the key and get her gone.

[00:04:02]>> Yeah.

[00:04:02]>> All right. Let me know.

[00:04:04]>> All right. All right.

[00:04:04]>> All right. Put that.

[00:04:05]>> Oh, you want yours back?

[00:04:08]>> Your Liberty. We know. We've been knocking. So, Miss Nelson calls. She says you doesn't have uh rights to this property and you've been coming here all weekend. So, she wants your key and she wants your trespass.

[00:04:22]>> This one, >> you have the key.

[00:04:25]>> This where it's in the house.

[00:04:27]>> It's in the house, >> right?

[00:04:29]>> Well, we need to go get it.

[00:04:31]>> What you pointing that way for?

[00:04:33]>> It's over there. Come on, take me over there.

[00:04:36]>> I don't got to get nothing. Close my door, sir. I have the right to >> Hold on. Hold on. Hold on. Ma'am, you don't understand. You're not in control here. Okay.

[00:04:45]>> You're here illegally. Okay.

[00:04:46]>> My door.

[00:04:47]>> You are here illegally.

[00:04:48]>> The key.

[00:04:49]>> If you give me the key, >> identify yourself. You're free to leave.

[00:04:53]If you're refusing to give me the key, >> you're going to go to jail.

[00:04:56]>> It's over there.

[00:04:56]>> Go get it.

[00:04:58]>> It's over there. He was just over there.

[00:05:03]I didn't say I was going anywhere, did I?

[00:05:06]>> Do I?

[00:05:09]>> Do not make this worse than it has to be. Do you understand, >> bro? The key is over there.

[00:05:14]>> Then go get it.

[00:05:16]>> Then get the key.

[00:05:17]>> Okay. And that's it. And then you go over there. Make it difficult. You might be spending night in jail today.

[00:05:25]>> It's fine. All my problems be gone anyways.

[00:05:28]>> Huh? all my problems will be gone anyways.

[00:05:31]>> Let me text my boss.

[00:05:33]>> I'm just telling y'all the key over there. I'm not >> And we're just asking you to go get it.

[00:05:36]>> Okay. And I'm asking you it's over there.

[00:05:38]>> So you're refusing to go get it?

[00:05:39]>> I'm not refusing to give it up.

[00:05:40]>> Whatever you trying to charge me with.

[00:05:49]>> Go to jail cuz I want you.

[00:05:51]>> It's absolutely right. It's that simple.

[00:05:56]>> Hello.

[00:05:56]>> Hey, we're here with her. She's uh playing hard-h hit it. Are you What are you wanting to do? She's saying the keys somewhere in the house, but I mean, >> she don't know. She need to find the key.

[00:06:06]>> You're not here to give us authority to go in the house. And we can't verify anything. So, are you the uh Are you the owner of this house? You the renter or what?

[00:06:14]>> Yeah, I am. I inherited the house.

[00:06:16]>> You inherited the house?

[00:06:17]>> She's not going to Did you tell her she's not going to jail?

[00:06:19]>> Well, I mean, she don't give the key up and you want her to go to jail, she's going to go to jail. Unless you think she left it in the house and >> just give >> Yeah, she's pointing over there somewhere and I told her to go get it and she's refusing. So, you tell me what you want me to do.

[00:06:32]>> Why is she refusing to get >> I have no idea. I just met her. I I don't know.

[00:06:37]>> She just said she gave y'all the key.

[00:06:39]>> She hasn't given us anything. I'm standing here with her watching the other officer. She's not giving us a key.

[00:06:45]>> So, >> she's texting you that she just gave us the key.

[00:06:48]>> Okay. We're standing here watching her.

[00:06:49]She's not give us a key. She's sitting there in her car. But >> so she went out the back door.

[00:06:54]>> No, she's right here. She came out the front door.

[00:06:58]>> Yeah, she had the key last night. So, >> yeah, she came out of the house. We saw her come out of the house. So, >> yeah, I seen her go in on the camera.

[00:07:05]>> But what do you want us to do?

[00:07:10]>> It's on the chair by the door. She say it's on the chair by the door.

[00:07:14]>> Okay. Are you good with that?

[00:07:16]>> I I I need verification that it's there.

[00:07:19]Well, we asking her to go get it and she's refusing. So, if it's not there, what do you want us to do?

[00:07:23]>> Take me to jail. Big fat white guy.

[00:07:27]>> Ma'am, you're not free to leave.

[00:07:29]>> Am I leaving?

[00:07:29]>> You're not.

[00:07:30]>> Am I leaving?

[00:07:32]>> Put your car apart, ma'am.

[00:07:35]>> Am I leaving?

[00:07:35]>> Don't touch me. Don't touch me. Turn your car.

[00:07:39]>> Am I leaving?

[00:07:40]>> Please don't uh do that.

[00:07:42]>> Right now, you're under arrest. Put your carpet.

[00:07:45]>> Put your car apart, ma'am. And uh Come on. You're on an arrest. Don't put Don't move that car, ma'am.

[00:07:54]>> Am I going to go anywhere? The the police car. I'm not going to go anywhere.

[00:07:57]>> Ma'am, put your car in park key.

[00:07:59]>> Ma'am, put your car in park.

[00:08:03]Put your car in park. There's an orange key here.

[00:08:07]>> Yeah. Yeah, that's it.

[00:08:09]>> Okay. Are you satisfied?

[00:08:11]>> Yeah, I'm satisfied. Could you make sure that the uh there's no vandalism in the house?

[00:08:15]>> I mean, how could I tell? The windows are busted. [ __ ] >> Yeah. Yeah, I know.

[00:08:23]>> Yeah, I have.

[00:08:24]>> All right. You want her You want her trespass from here?

[00:08:26]>> Uh, that'll that'll be um >> I'm saying what what I'll do is tell her if she comes back here, she could go to jail and I will route up a report.

[00:08:35]>> Yeah. Yeah. Do that. And then uh the Chrysler, my mother, she's on the way right now to go get the key.

[00:08:42]>> Okay, sounds good.

[00:08:44]>> Hey, she's under arrest now, man. Put your car parked now.

[00:08:50]Put your car park now.

[00:08:53]>> Okay.

[00:08:53]>> You got your key.

[00:08:54]>> Put your car park. You know you're under arrest now. You're not leaving enough.

[00:08:58]You done hit me with your car. Put me >> I did not hit you with my car.

[00:09:01]>> Yes, you did. Put your car in park.

[00:09:04]>> Ma'am, put your car in park.

[00:09:05]>> Put your car in park. Ma'am, >> you reaching out in my vehicle.

[00:09:10]>> Put your car in park. Ma'am, >> give me one sec. Do not snatch stuff out my hand.

[00:09:19]>> Can you stop?

[00:09:20]>> Get out. Get out the car.

[00:09:21]>> Stop. What the going on?

[00:09:24]>> Get out the car, >> sir.

[00:09:26]>> Get out the car. Ma'am, >> you breaking my >> Get the car. Get out of the car.

[00:09:44]>> Get up.

[00:09:45]>> I am getting up. Catch your feet.

[00:09:47]>> I don't even have no shoes. I'm not getting up without my shoes.

[00:09:49]>> You're too old to be acting like this, man.

[00:09:51]>> I don't I don't have shoes.

[00:09:52]>> Ma'am, you can either get up and walk to this car or we're going to drag you to it.

[00:09:55]>> Act like a real little girl, man. Get up. GET UP, MAN.

[00:09:58]>> OW.

[00:09:59]>> GET UP. OW.

[00:10:09]>> Sit down. Or he's going over there to snatch you.

[00:10:12]>> I'm Can I fix my clothes?

[00:10:13]>> To hurt.

[00:10:14]>> Can I fix my clothes? Have a seat.

[00:10:16]>> Can I drink my clothes?

[00:10:17]>> Have a seat.

[00:10:22]>> Jesus Christ almighty.

[00:10:25]I'll get her t car towed. She's not.

[00:10:28]She's out of town. So, but mom's on the way. So, >> her mom?

[00:10:32]>> No, the owner's mom. She gave her this key to give back to her mom this week.

[00:10:36]>> She was never >> because she was leaving to go out of town. Never have given permission. She was only giving this to give back to mom and then she started using this all weekend coming and going. So the owner's out of town, sees it on the camera, calls us, says, "Hey, she's in there. I want her gone." Like she doesn't live there. She doesn't have any property there. The house is beat to crap. I don't think anybody actually lives in there.

[00:10:56]>> You been inside?

[00:10:57]>> I didn't go in and look around. But the windows are busted here. They're boarded up down there on that side. The back windows are all boarded up.

[00:11:06]Um she said so if she's willing to give up the key then just trespass her. Uh if she's not then yeah I'll press charges.

[00:11:14]And that's when you like she hit me with the car too early for all this.

[00:11:21]>> Dang. Happ >> just made it worse and worse.

[00:11:30]>> Hey your vehicle's being towed. We should let you know before you get to the jail who the toe company will be.

[00:11:35]>> Why are you taking me to jail?

[00:11:39]>> That's right. I'm going to give you the key, right? Your daughter's on the phone. I'm going to give her the rundown on what just happened. So, >> okay.

[00:11:45]>> Um, yeah. So, we were talking to her as I walked over to get the key. Uh, she backed up and hit an officer with her car. So, we had to actually drag her out of her car and now she's on the way to jail.

[00:11:55]>> Begin with detention. Under Terry versus Ohio, decided in 1968, an officer may briefly detain a person on reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. Here, the property owner's contemporaneous complaint, communicated directly to the responding officer, satisfies that threshold. The subject was lawfully detained from the moment officers arrived. She was never free to leave.

[00:12:18]The officer's conditional phrasing, comply, and we end. This described a discretionary path to release, not the subject's actual legal status. The framing was inadvisable. The underlying detention remained lawful because reasonable suspicion never dissipated.

[00:12:32]Move to force. Graham versus Connor, 1989, requires that any use of force be objectively reasonable judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer at the moment of decision. Three factors govern the severity of the offense, the immediate threat to officers, and active resistance or flight. The underlying offense was misdemeanor trespass weighing against significant force.

[00:12:57]However, when the subject placed herself behind the wheel of a running vehicle during an active detention, the threat factor escalated. Under Scott versus Harris, 2007, force used to terminate a vehicular threat is judged by the totality of the circumstances. Hard empty-hand extraction without weapon deployment sits within the reasonable range when the alternative is a moving vehicle. I am going to tow this vehicle.

[00:13:22]Are you want her charged with trespassing?

[00:13:26]>> No, you don't have to charge with trespassing.

[00:13:28]>> Okay.

[00:13:29]>> More charges.

[00:13:30]>> All right. Yeah, she's Yeah, she's facing big girl charges now. So, >> Wow.

[00:13:34]>> Um, >> okay. Can you uh do you have your ID on you?

[00:13:40]>> Me?

[00:13:40]>> No. No.

[00:13:41]>> Oh, okay.

[00:13:42]>> Miss Nelson?

[00:13:44]>> Yeah.

[00:13:44]>> Hey, can you send me a picture of your ID card? Yeah, >> that'll be the easiest way to get your information. So, >> Oh, um for what? For >> for the report. The reason you called us.

[00:13:58]>> Oh, okay.

[00:13:59]>> Yeah.

[00:14:08]>> And I do have um a new one coming in the mail, but it does have my This one does have my information on it.

[00:14:16]>> Okay. Yeah, that that's fine. Yeah, that's just the easiest way is send it with your deal number on it and all that. So now she How did she end up with the key?

[00:14:26]>> You gave it to her to give to mom.

[00:14:27]>> Yeah. Yeah. I gave I was there with her on Monday. I just got back from out of town. And when I left Monday, I told her to leave Monday.

[00:14:36]>> Yeah.

[00:14:37]>> And give her the key on Monday. All this is in the text messages to give give my grandmother her key when she get the chance. and she just never left. I've been looking at the camera. I'm like, "Well, damn."

[00:14:51]>> Right.

[00:14:51]>> And then I see her today 4:00 in the morning coming in and out and had another stranger in there. So, I'm just like, "Oh, yeah. It's time to go."

[00:15:00]>> Okay. All right. Sounds good. Well, yeah. Send me a picture of your ID and uh we'll get it taken care of. Unless you're okay with her vehicle being here on the property. I mean, I'm going to have to tow it.

[00:15:13]>> No, no, you can leave the vehicle there.

[00:15:14]Um, >> I wouldn't do that. Have you talked to your dad?

[00:15:20]>> No. Actually, I'm trying to keep this away from him. That's why I have to have everything.

[00:15:25]>> So, yes, you need to get her car towed.

[00:15:28]>> Okay.

[00:15:28]>> Cuz that's going to be his first question.

[00:15:31]What car is this?

[00:15:32]>> Okay. I'm um I'm standing up um right now, officer.

[00:15:37]>> Okay. Perfect.

[00:15:39]>> All right.

[00:15:42]All right. I will uh I'll hit you back if I need something else. Okay.

[00:15:46]>> Yeah, cuz do you know that I have a I have a new number, a new license number.

[00:15:51]That's what I was trying to say.

[00:15:53]>> Just if you'll send me the one you have, I can pull the new one off the one you have.

[00:15:57]>> Okay. Okay. Good.

[00:15:59]>> All right.

[00:16:00]>> All right.

[00:16:03]>> All right, Mom. I guess you heard everything.

[00:16:05]>> Yes.

[00:16:05]>> So, >> thank you so much for your assistance cuz I was like, "Oh my god."

[00:16:09]>> That's the key there. I haven't been inside to see if anything's damaged.

[00:16:13]>> Yeah, of >> course I wouldn't know, but >> looks like the windows and stuff's kind of busted out.

[00:16:18]>> She already has Well, he has damage from his son damaging the house, unfortunately.

[00:16:28]>> 50.

[00:16:30]>> All right. Um, do you have your ID on you?

[00:16:33]>> Yes, I do.

[00:16:33]>> I just need a document saying I gave you the key.

[00:16:35]>> Okay.

[00:16:37]>> All right.

[00:16:38]>> I'll call you if I need anything.

[00:16:40]>> Okay. Thank you.

[00:16:41]>> Stop. Like real [ __ ] >> That's act This is actually insane.

[00:16:48]This is actually so insane right now.

[00:16:51]Excuse me. What are you trying I mean, what are you charging me with?

[00:16:54]>> Charging resistance.

[00:16:56]>> Oh, okay. Cool.

[00:16:59]And my and my vehicle is being towed.

[00:17:02]Wow. I tell you what, y'all just some nasty ass [ __ ] Oh child.

[00:17:19]You said what? I'll be out today. I know. Thank you. Y'all got my phone.

[00:17:23]Y'all got my car. Y'all left my windows on. Y'all just don't give a Don't be trying to charge me with nothing else cuz it say on your camera. I'm make sure I get this damn car number two that you only charge me with. It's just the officer.

[00:17:43]Turn to the charges. Florida statute 843.02 criminalizes resisting an officer without violence as a firstdegree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail, and a fine of up to $1,000 per count. Three counts reflect three discrete moments of refusal. Absent are Florida statute 843.01, resisting with violence, and section 784.07, 07 battery on a law enforcement officer, both felonies. The decision to charge only the misdemeanor counts despite the officer's account of vehicle contact signals prosecutorial discretion or an evidentiary judgment that the alleged contact did not meet the felony threshold. Grades follow. Officer Johnson receives a B minus. The legal foundation was sound. The force was reasonable under Graham, but the conditional free to leave framing and the tactical positioning at the door of a running vehicle were avoidable errors.

[00:18:37]The subject receives a D. She is presumed innocent and engaged in no violent attack, but every observable decision moved the encounter toward escalation. The backup officer receives a B. The department grade is incomplete because policy and supervisory documents were not available for review. Three lessons emerge. First, the phrase free to leave is a legal term of art.

[00:19:00]Officers should reserve it for moments when a person actually is free to leave and use plain language for everything else. Second, never approach the open door of a running vehicle whose driver has not yielded control. Maintain angular distance, use the door pillar as cover, and order the engine off before approach. Third, for civilians, the cheapest path through a police encounter is compliance with lawful orders, followed by legal challenge in court if those orders prove unlawful. Resistance in the field rarely improves a legal position. It almost always worsens it.

[00:19:33]Let us know if there is an interaction or legal topic that you would like us to discuss in the comments below. Thank you for watching and don't forget to subscribe to our channel for more content on police court interactions.