Foreign Property News | Posted by Hnin Ei Khin
A FRUSTRATED homeowner was shocked to discover that she had to evict three guests who overstayed their welcome.
Cherie Dubuque thought she was doing a favor for her employee by letting him crash on the couch for a few days after he claimed that he suffered from a heat stroke.
(Cherie Dubuque thought she was doing a favor for her employee by letting him crash on the couch after her suffered from alleged heat stroke.Credit: KVUE)
(The woman had to head to court after three of her house guests refused to leave.Credit: KVUE)
(Corey Luper claimed that the woman was allowing him to stay until the home sold.Credit: KVUE)
The young man, Cory Luper from Oklahoma, had knocked on the woman's door, asking if he could make some money trimming her trees.
"I had a knock at my door. There was this young man, 30s, wanting to trim trees off my roof," she told KVUE ABC News.
Dubuque had other yard labor for Luper, who was willing to work various jobs around her home.
Things went South when Luper suddenly became ill while on the job.
"I got home, and he claimed heat stroke," she said. "So, I gave him some coconut water and fixed him a smoothie."
Dubuque graciously opened her home to her employee so he could spend a few days to recover.
Almost a week later, Luper's brother and wife showed up, and she allowed them to stay, too.
Almost a week later, Luper's brother and wife showed up, and she allowed them to stay, too.
She wasn't planning on so many guests, and their visit was turning into a much more extended stay than planned.
One night, Dubuque was woken in the middle of the night when her guests began arguing.
She asked them to leave, and they did not comply so she was forced to call the cops.
Law enforcement arrived, and much to her surprise, there was not much they could do.
"Cory said, 'You can't kick us out. You'll have to get us evicted. We can stay for as long as we want,'" recalled Dubuque.
"The police were there when he said this. They said, 'Yep. If you invited him in.'"
The reason has to do with the definition of criminal trespass, according to Austin police officer Destiny Silva.
"What criminal trespass is when you're in a location, or you stay at a location without effective consent from the owner. So, when you have a guest stay over, and you allow someone to stay in your home," the cop explained.
Luper claimed that him and Dubuque had an agreement where he would pay off some of his rent with labor.
Dubuque maintains that Luper's claims are false.
She had only one option: to take her guests to court and evict them.
The Judge granted Dubuque possession in less than a minute. She was grateful to finally be able to put an end to the extended stay.
"I'm just so relieved … so relieved," said Dubuque.
(Luper alleged that her was working off his rent by doing manual labor for the homeowner. Credit: KVUE)
(Many homeowners are unaware than they may have to evict guests that they invite into their home, even if there is no lease signed.Credit: KVUE)
Ref: HOME WRECKER I invited three guests to stay in my home a few nights – but they refused to leave and I was unable to kick them out (the-sun)