Florida sheriff’s office demolishes home with a history of criminal activity and complaints

ESCAMBIA COUNTY, FL – The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office saw more than 20 calls to a single Navy Point residence over a three-year period.

Neighbors also made numerous complaints about the home.

County Code Enforcement has identified the house as having unsafe structure, broken windows, solid waste, trash and debris.

So the agency, working in conjunction with other county officials, decided it was time to get rid of the problem. It was time to take the house down.

Sheriff Chip Simmons office said that arrests had been made at that address for offenses that include (but are not limited to) active battery, violation of probation, kidnapping, domestic violence, manufacture of drugs, possession of a controlled substance, controlled substance without a prescription, possession of cocaine, and weapons charges.

According to WEAR TV, Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, in partnership with county Code Enforcement and the residents at Navy Point, ordered a Final Notice of Demolition for the address.

“These measures include, but not limited to demolishing your structure(s), and legally disposing of all contributing conditions, and towing of described vehicles if applicable,” the notice stated.

“The reasonable cost of such will be assessed against you and will constitute a lien on the property.”

Sheriff Simmons had this to say.

“If you are engaged in criminal activity and are a continuing nuisance in a neighborhood, you could lose your right to live there,” Sheriff Chip Simmons said.

“Our neighborhoods deserve better and should not have to tolerate continuing illegal activity. This neighborhood became a better place today.”

Before tearing the residence down, the sheriff’s office SWAT team used the house at 9 Cousineau Road to conduct training.

Of the demolition, the sheriff’s office posted to Facebook, saying:

“The Big Bad Wolf’s Got Nothing on Us”

Many people responded to the Facebook post and photos with expressions of support and appreciation. Not everyone was a fan.

James Furrow posted, “I guess this is why so many people are homeless now.”

Savannah Bowyer said:

“I feel like this was a waste of a perfectly good dwelling that someone in need could have used. I’m all for weeding out the trouble, as the post said, ‘extensive criminal activity and a continued nuisance’… absolutely evict them, but a family in need could have used that house!”

“Now that house could’ve been sold for a little of nothing to a family in need,” Grace Lotus said wrote with an eye roll emoji.

It is almost has though some of these individuals didn’t bother to read the post to see what Code Enforcement had to say about it.

Fred Villamor tried to set the record straight that this was about a condemned home with unsafe living conditions as well as the criminal aspect.

“I’ve lived DIRECTLY across the street from this House for 25 years , the two on each side have all had challenges , but this one has Black mold , extensive water damage and was deemed condemned … so those saying it should have been saved , it would cost TWICE the value OF the property just to simply remediate it … the persons that lived / squatted AT 9 Cousineau stole FROM me directly and that’s one of the reasons he went TO Prison”

What are your thoughts. As law enforcement, is this something you would like to see more of, or do you think this was an over-the-top measure.

Reach out to us and let us know.

Local governments tearing down homes due to unsafe living conditions is not without precedent. For more on this issue, we invite you to

DIG DEEPER

Neighbors rally together to support Miami man, 70, who was left homeless after the city demolished his home

MIAMI, FLA – In a hate-filled world, it’s nice to see empathy and kindness still exist out there amongst neighbors.

Michael Hamilton, 70, has lived at his home on Northwest 45^th Street in Miami for the last 60 years.  On August 18, he was served a 10-day notice to vacate his property, due to unsafe living conditions.

The 10 days would have given Hamilton until August 28 to vacate, however, the demolition crews contracted to do the job, decided to arrive 48 hours earlier than was ordered, catching Mr. Hamilton off guard and with nowhere to go, thinking he had two more days to make plans on where he was going to live.

Describing the moment, the demolition crew showed up unexpectedly to his home, Hamilton told a reporter for NBC 6 he was ordered to vacate immediately.

He was unable to take anything with him but his birth certificate and a few documents.

“I didn’t even have any shoes on,” he told the reporter. 

When asked by an NBC 6 reporter to give his opinion on the situation, he said:

“Sadness not as much as anger.  It makes no logical sense” he said. “I don’t see how any of this is due process of the law”.

With the late summer temperatures averaging over 80 degrees, Hamilton had been sleeping on his front lawn, out in the elements and the blazing Miami sun, since the wrecking crew arrived.

A neighbor’s grandson Keith Lorren wrote in a Facebook post, describing Hamilton’s living conditions, stating:

“Birds were pecking at his feet.  He was outside in the grass and the heat with no water, no food and no home.  This is an outrage.” 

WPGN, Local 10 news reports the home had previously been signed over to Hamilton’s cousin and the city’s building department tried, for the past year to reach the cousin, but it is unclear if the notice was ever received.

A statement released by the City of Miami said,

“Several attempts were made to contact the property owner during the last 13 months to no avail,” the statement read.

“The City of Miami takes the safety of its residents very seriously and for that reason the Department of Human Services is working diligently to relocate the resident to a hotel.”  

The City says they sent pictures of the home before it was demolished, saying it was unsafe, along with a list of several code violations.  Hamilton told reporters he and his family were never contacted by the City of Miami.

Lorren decided to ensure Mr. Hamilton would have a roof over his head and began to collect donations via social media.  He was able to raise enough money to allow Mr. Hamilton to stay in a local hotel for a while.

The assistant director of building services for the City of Miami, said they did not know the property was occupied and if they had known, “the outcome would have been different.”

Lorren says:

“It broke my heart because my grandparents passed away, and when I see Mr. Michael, I see my grandparents”. 

Lorren feels the city should build him a new home on the same lot.

The Department of Human Services was also contacted to help Mr. Hamilton.  According to Milton Vikers, an employee of DHS, told NBC 6 staff members have reached out to Hamilton and he says:

“Our staff will relocate him tomorrow into a hotel space that will last 14 days, which will give us time to move this individual into transitional or permanent [housing].”

Thanks to the kindness and the generosity of a neighbor, Mr. Hamilton will be able to live out the remainder of his years, comfortably, instead of having to live on the streets of Miami.