The Kentucky state legislature is currently considering a new piece of legislation known as HB 5 or the Safer Kentucky Act, and it has liberals setting their hair on fire. If passed into law in its current form, HB 5 would authorize the use of force by private citizens against “unhoused” people found to be camping on their private property. It would also make unsanctioned homeless encampments illegal. Over at Vice, they are describing the bill as a way to “legalize the killing of homeless people.” The bill would also increase criminal penalties for homeless camping and illegal drug use. To hear this being described on the left, you would think that they will next be demanding Nazi salutes from everyone.
The bill, known as the “Safer Kentucky Act,” or HB5, would target homelessness, drug possession and mental illness by drastically increasing criminal penalties for a range of offenses. Introduced last week by Republican state representative Jared Bauman, it already has 52 sponsors in Kentucky’s House of Representatives. A vote is scheduled for this week.
In addition, it says that “deadly physical force” is justifiable if a defendant believes that someone is trying to “dispossess” them of their property or is attempting a robbery or committing arson, language that could also have ramifications for tenants overstaying their lease.
While the legislation doesn’t mention the matter specifically, it’s fairly clear that this bill isn’t just about “the homeless.” It’s about the massive influx of migrants that are overrunning both public and private property across the country. Yes, it will no doubt wind up applying to homeless people who were already living in Kentucky, but the problem has blown up in the past three years.
It’s also not true that the legislation “criminalizes homelessness.” It’s not a crime to be homeless. But it is criminal to commit crimes whether you have a home or not. Setting up camp on someone’s private property without permission is a crime. Refusing to leave when ordered to do so is also. But with so many people showing up, the police are overwhelmed. They can’t come running every time a property owner calls to report migrants in their yard.
So what are people supposed to do? Previously, if you tried to forcibly remove vagrants from your property, you would probably be the one who wound up in court facing some sort of minor assault charge. What this bill seems to be about more than anything else is a return to the recognition of property rights and the right of people to “stand their ground” in defense of their “castle.”
Would I have concerns about this bill if I lived in Kentucky? I’ll have to admit that I would. It’s not hard to imagine some of these potential situations getting out of hand before we know it. While not typically the case, there are still homeless people – including illegal migrants – who manage to get their hands on a gun. And Kentucky is a stronghold of legal gun ownership as well. What should have been a case of clearing out some vagrants could potentially escalate into a shootout in moments. But if the state had taken care of the homeless originally and the borders hadn’t been thrown open, none of this would be necessary.
Speaking of guns, another thing that HB 5 would do is eliminate almost all parole, probation, and cash bail for gun crimes. Kentucky tried bail reform a couple of years ago and the sponsors of this bill (along with the police unions) described the results as nothing short of disastrous. States around the country have been learning all of this the hard way. Perhaps the voters of Kentucky have woken up to that reality and decided that enough is enough. The Safer Kentucky Act definitely seems a bit on the extreme side, but we’re living in extreme times. It feels like nothing is normal anymore, and creative solutions such as this may wind up being the only path back toward and ordered, civil society. We shall see how this works out for the Bluegrass State. If it’s not a total disaster, other states may decide to take on similar policies.
