News For Reasonable People

A new, 2,000-person migrant caravan is making its way north to the US border — and is expected to reach El Paso, Texas, in just the next few days. Videos posted online show a swarm of people walking through the streets of southern Mexico on Monday. In one clip, an apparent leader could be seen encouraging the group through a bullhorn to chant “A la frontera” — meaning “To the border.” The group proclaimed in Spanish, “We are not criminals, we are international workers.” Church-run border shelters are preparing for the group’s arrival, as they run out of space to house the thousands of migrants trying to make their way into the United States, according to Border Report.

Gov. Ron DeSantis says "squatting" is a scam that violates private property rights and signed a bill intended to help protect homeowners in Orlando on Wednesday. According to a video Florida's governor posted on X (formerly known as Twitter), squatters commandeering homes have become an issue nationwide. However, he says the state will be putting an end to this scam. "We are in the state of Florida ending this squatters scam once and for all. And momentarily I'll be signing HB 621, which will give the homeowner the ability to quickly and legally remove a squatter from a property and which will increase criminal penalties for squatting," shared DeSantis during Wednesday's press conference at the Orange County State Attorney's Office. HB 621 will take effect on July 1, 2024. It creates a new way for property owners to remove squatters from their homes.

New rules are coming to strip clubs that could make work conditions safer for dancers and eventually allow alcohol sales at these businesses. Gov. Jay Inslee signed SB 6105 into law on Monday. The legislation was sponsored by Sen. Rebecca Saldana (D-Seattle) and it requires a series of worker protections for dancers, eliminates lewd conduct rules for establishments that serve alcohol, and creates a path for adult entertainment businesses to get liquor licenses. “It's pretty simple why we are passing this bill. These are working folks and working people deserve safety in the environment in which they work,” the governor said.

In a striking revelation, downtown Portland faces the highest office vacancy rate in the nation, a direct aftermath of the chaotic "Summer of Love" and subsequent control by groups such as Antifa and Black Lives Matter. The city's once-vibrant heart now grapples with an alarming exodus of businesses and a dwindling foot traffic recovery rate, placing it significantly below national averages. Critics point to Measure 110, Oregon's controversial drug decriminalization policy, as a catalyst for the increase in homelessness, drug addiction, and perceived lawlessness, exacerbating the city's decline. Local business leaders and residents demand urgent actions to reclaim and revitalize downtown, advocating for both short and long-term solutions to address safety, cleanliness, and public order. This scenario underscores the broader debate on urban policy effectiveness, security, and economic resilience, spotlighting Portland as a cautionary tale of good intentions gone awry.

Chicago's handling of its migrant crisis, led by Mayor Brandon Johnson, has sparked controversy and raised questions about transparency and financial accountability. Nearly $1 million weekly is being funneled into just three hotels serving as migrant shelters, with allegations of financial mismanagement and cover-up. Investigations have highlighted potential health risks due to overcrowding and challenges in providing initial healthcare to migrants. Legal battles ensue as NBC investigates the city's reluctance to disclose spending details, pointing to gaps in the city's response to migrant health needs. With over $300 million spent on the crisis, the lack of clarity on where these funds are allocated—especially regarding out-of-state companies' profits—erodes public trust. Amidst this turmoil, Chicago grapples with broader issues like homelessness and gun violence, struggling to manage the influx of asylum seekers. This scenario underscores the need for transparency and effective leadership in addressing complex urban challenges.

In an audacious move that's stirring controversy across the board, New York City has embarked on a plan to issue prepaid debit cards to immigrant families lacking legal status. This initiative aims to alleviate the financial strain on these families by providing them with $350 weekly for essential purchases such as food and baby supplies, exclusively at local bodegas and grocery stores. The scheme, intended to mirror the SNAP food assistance program, has faced criticism for potential fraud risks and its impact on the city's budget. Despite these concerns, city officials argue the program could save up to $600,000 monthly by offering more flexible food choices and boosting the local economy. Yet, detractors question the logistics, fearing misuse and the indirect encouragement of illegal immigration, spotlighting the broader debate on managing such populations amid rising urban challenges.

In Portland, Oregon, the city is bracing itself for a potentially tumultuous election season, reflected in the preparation of new crowd control measures and steel barriers around federal buildings. This initiative stems from past experiences, particularly the 2020 protests, which left scars on the cityscape and its community. Amidst concerns of renewed violence, Portland's police force is assembling a specialized team trained to handle violent protests, equipped with enhanced gear and training. The narrative captures a city still grappling with the aftermath of previous conflicts, seeking to fortify itself against future unrest. The discussion touches upon the broader implications of civic preparedness, public safety, and the right to protest, highlighting the delicate balance cities must maintain in a politically charged atmosphere. This scenario underscores the challenges urban centers face in ensuring peace and security while respecting democratic expressions of dissent.

An Atlanta property owner is frustrated after he says people have been living on his land without permission for years. David Morris, who now lives in California, says squatters have been living on his southeast Atlanta property since the pandemic, and it's been quite an ordeal getting them to leave. However, according to his attorney, David Perrie, they were granted Writ of Possession on March 21. Morris says he now plans to install fencing to keep unwanted visitors out. Meanwhile, he says he was contacted by code enforcement to clean up the property. "It's frustrating that I'm having to spend so much money. I spent $10,000 on cleaning up garbage from vagrants," Morris told FOX 5.

Video shows a team of Los Angeles home inspectors giving a group of a dozen squatters a reality check before they entered the home, changed the locks and boarded up the windows. "The police are gonna come," one of the squatters tells the inspectors in the front yard in cellphone video recorded earlier this month in the frontyard of a San Fernando Valley home. "That's fine," the inspector replies. "We're coming in." A group known as the Squatter Squad took the video and says it has been legally removing squatters from private property since 2018. They use various legal techniques, applicable on a case by case basis, to remove people who invade homes and refuse to leave.

In a controversial move, Toronto Police have suggested that residents leave their car keys readily available to thieves to prevent potential home invasions and violence. This advice, met with widespread ridicule and disbelief, underscores a growing concern over crime rates and the effectiveness of law enforcement strategies in urban areas. Critics argue that such measures encourage criminal behavior rather than addressing the root causes of crime, such as inadequate policing and social policies. The recommendation has sparked a heated debate about safety, property rights, and the responsibilities of law enforcement in safeguarding citizens without compromising their rights. The broader implications of this advice reflect on societal attitudes towards crime prevention, law enforcement's role, and the balance between public safety and individual freedoms.

Parents of students at University of California Berkeley have become so concerned about their offspring’s safety they have hired private security to secure the local vicinity. SFGATE reports that parents were forced to take matters into their own hands amid a surge in violent crime around the UC Berkeley campus located outside of San Francisco: Parents and community members of SafeBears, a nonprofit organization started in 2022, raised $40,000 at the end of 2023 to launch the pilot program, which started March 6 and concludes on Saturday, according to the group’s website. Six security guards from Streetplus, a third-party contractor, are patrolling five routes around the campus and the university’s residence halls on foot and by bicycle from 6:30 p.m. to 3 a.m. daily. The security guards are not armed and will not enter university property, the website says, but are trained in de-escalation and CPR. They also must earn a California “guard card” from the California Bureau of Security and Investigative Services, requiring them to clear a background check from the California Department of Justice and FBI. While the program will not be continuing beyond this weekend, parents hope that they will be able to convince the university to take more action. “While we will not be extending the length of our private safety pilot beyond March 23, we will certainly continue to push the administration at UC Berkeley to do more to protect students from violence,” Sagar Jethani, president of SafeBears, told SFGATE.

California restaurants are reportedly laying off staff and reducing hours for other team members in an effort to cut costs ahead of a California state law taking effect on April 1 that will raise fast-food workers’ hourly wage to $20. In the months leading up to the wage mandate, California eateries, particularly pizza joints, have established a plan to cut jobs, according to state records obtained by The Wall Street Journal. Pizza Hut and Round Table Pizza — a Menlo Park, Calif.-founded chain of 400 pizza parlors, mostly on the West Coast — have said they plan to lay off around 1,280 delivery drivers this year, according to records that major employers must submit to the state before large layoffs, The Journal reported. Pizza Hut already sent notices to employees informing them of their last day. Michael Ojeda, a Pizza Hut driver for eight years in Ontario, Calif., received one of the notes from Pizza Hut franchisee Southern California Pizza in December telling him that his last day of work would be in February.

In the first three months after the City of Denver converted a hotel in Denver's Central Park neighborhood to a shelter for the homeless, calls for police and first responders rose 2,900% compared to the previous three months when it served as a hotel, according to city data obtained by CBS News Colorado.

A federal judge in Illinois appointed by President Barack Obama ruled that the Constitution protects the rights of noncitizens who enter the US illegally after a Mexican immigrant living in Chicago was found in possession of a handgun. US District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman ruled earlier this month that a federal ban on undocumented immigrants owning firearms is unconstitutional, and dismissed charges against Heriberto Carbajal-Flores, who was arrested in 2020 after violating a federal law that prohibits noncitizens from possessing guns. Coleman ruled that since Carbajal-Flores has no criminal record and the circumstances behind his arrest were not violent, he should not be deprived of his Second Amendment right to bear arms in self-defense, Fox News Digital reported.

The Washington State Supreme Court has ruled that the bar exam is no longer a requirement for prospective lawyers. On Friday, The Bar Licensure Task Force explained that the bar is “minimally effective for ensuring competency” and “disproportionally and unnecessarily blocks marginalized groups from becoming practicing attorneys.” According to The Spokesman-Review, after appointing the task force in 2020 to assess “disproportionate impacts on examinees of color and first-generation examinees,” the courts agreed to substitute the exam with “experiential-learning alternatives.” The task force was made up of over 50 groups of representatives and “examined the character and fitness process for lawyer licensure.” Although students have historically interned under another lawyer before becoming attorneys, they still had to pass the bar to get their license to practice. Under the new guidelines, lawyers can forgo the bar, first administered in Delaware in 1783, by participating in a six-month apprenticeship and finishing three courses.

Beverly Grove Place, a small outpost of Beverly Hills, is becoming a popular address for the rich and famous. Basketball superstar LeBron James is building a house there, and celebrity couple Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck bought a $61 million compound there last year. Yet a bunch of squatters lived right down the street from James' new home at 1316 Beverly Grove Place from October 2023 to February 2024, reports New York Magazine. These squatters weren’t poor Angelenos who couldn't afford rent in one of the most expensive cities in the U.S.. They were grifters who saw the opportunity to use a neglected mansion to give the appearance of wealth and throw massive parties. A January report from The Real Deal said the 5,900-square-foot home was listed for $4.6 million. The fact that they could con their way into the “most exclusive Zip code in America” shows that expensive neighborhoods may also see squatting incidents.

In a controversial move, Colorado is considering legislation that would remove caps on the number of unrelated roommates allowed in a single dwelling, a policy shift aimed at addressing housing affordability but raising significant concerns among residents. Critics argue this could exacerbate existing issues in cities like Denver, where the mayor has already faced backlash for handling the migrant crisis and homelessness, with a notable rise in the homeless population and cuts to city services due to financial strain. Supporters of the bill see it as a necessary step towards alleviating the housing crunch, but opponents fear it will lead to overoccupied homes and strain on local resources, potentially transforming neighborhoods and impacting quality of life. This proposal highlights the ongoing debate over how best to manage housing and urban development in a way that balances growth with community standards.

A migrant TikToker with a 500,000-strong online following is offering his comrades tips on how to “invade” unoccupied homes and invoke squatter’s rights in the United States. Venezuelan national Leonel Moreno, who appears to live in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, said in a recent video that under US law, “if a house is not inhabited, we can seize it.” He appeared to be referring to adverse possession laws, commonly known as squatter’s rights, which allow unlawful property occupants rights over the property they occupy without the owner’s consent, in certain circumstances. Moreno claimed in the viral TikTok clip, which has drawn more than 3.9 million views, that he has “African friends” who have “already taken about seven homes.”

Wealthy Los Angeles residents are increasingly seeing their luxury goods stolen by bands of “burglary tourists” who are exploiting the US visa system to enter the country and break into mansions before fleeing to their home countries with the loot, police have warned. The burglars from Chile, Ecuador, Colombia and Peru are allegedly responsible for 94 burglaries in just one section of the city in 2023 alone, officials with the Los Angeles Police Department told the Los Angeles Times. The gangs are also believed to have stolen from Long Island and New Jersey last month, and in 2022, the FBI considered them “an enormous threat” to the US, a supervisory special agent told the Washington Post.

A pair of vigilantes allegedly tried to forcefully evict three alleged squatters from a million-dollar Queens home after the homeowner was arrested when she changed the locks and tried to remove them. Two unidentified men driving a black pickup truck pulled into the driveway of the Flushing home searching for the tenants Tuesday afternoon, according to the Daily Mail. “We are looking to get this guy out,” one of the men allegedly said, a neighbor told the outlet. “I am here to talk to him. I want to see why he is here.”

A pair of vigilantes allegedly tried to forcefully evict three alleged squatters from a million-dollar Queens home after the homeowner was arrested when she changed the locks and tried to remove them. Two unidentified men driving a black pickup truck pulled into the driveway of the Flushing home searching for the tenants Tuesday afternoon, according to the Daily Mail. “We are looking to get this guy out,” one of the men allegedly said, a neighbor told the outlet. “I am here to talk to him. I want to see why he is here.” Adele Andaloro, 47, was in the process of selling the property when the group shadily took refuge in the home last month. Andaloro inherited the $1 million property from her parents after they died.

In a stark revelation, nearly half of downtown Pittsburgh's office spaces are predicted to be vacant by 2028, posing a significant challenge not only to the city’s economic landscape but also to its social fabric. This downturn is attributed to the rising risks of foreclosures and a dramatic shift in workplace dynamics, with remote work diminishing the need for physical office spaces. The situation is further exacerbated by the Pittsburgh Police Department’s announcement that it will prioritize emergency calls, leaving lesser incidents like theft and harassment to be handled by an "enhanced telephone reporting unit," essentially an answering machine. This shift in police response underscores the broader implications of declining downtown occupancy: reduced tax revenue, decreased law enforcement presence, and a looming fiscal crisis for the city. The problem, while acute in Pittsburgh, mirrors a nationwide trend where cities grapple with the fallout of remote work and changing urban dynamics, threatening the vibrancy and economic stability of downtown areas.

In Las Vegas, private security teams are tackling an escalating squatter crisis in apartment complexes, exacerbated by rising evictions. Protective Force International, led by CEO Jonathan Alvarez, is at the forefront, servicing over 300 properties besieged by unauthorized occupants. The situation has deteriorated to the point where a specialized task force is now deployed to address this challenge head-on. These squatters, beyond seeking shelter, are often found amidst dangerous conditions, including drug use and the presence of trafficked children. The security teams, prepared for various threats, work alongside Metro Police to mitigate these issues, suggesting strategies to property owners to prevent squatter incursions. This development reflects a broader problem tied to the pandemic's aftermath, highlighting the struggle between property rights and the homeless crisis, with innovative solutions like drone surveillance being employed to manage the situation.

San Francisco city officials plan to pull its offices from a downtown building near City Hall due to high rent and a bad real estate market, The San Francisco Standard reported Friday. The 11-story building in downtown San Francisco was initially leased to city and county officials back in 1999 and has over the years served as office space for many municipal departments like the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector, the Mayor’s Office of Disability and the Department of the Environment, the outlet reported. (San Francisco Somehow Finds A Way To Make Catching Criminals Even Harder)

Arizona cities are on high alert as the imminent cutoff of federal funding threatens to unleash a crisis with thousands of asylum seekers potentially released onto the streets. Since 2019, Arizona has been a significant transit point for migrants with valid asylum claims, facilitated by a network of government agencies and nonprofits. These entities have ensured migrants are temporarily sheltered and then transported to their final destinations across the country. However, the drying up of federal funds means this critical support infrastructure is at risk. Customs and Border Protection has processed nearly half a million asylum seekers in Arizona alone, routing them through cities like Douglas, Nogales, Yuma, Tucson, Casa Grande, and even Phoenix. The potential for large-scale street releases poses a dire scenario for local communities, as state and local officials scramble for solutions amidst budget constraints. The situation highlights the broader national debate on immigration policy and border management.