Council hears push to broaden trespass enforcement as property-standards ordinance is introduced

Council members and residents in Shreveport discussed proposed changes to property-standards enforcement and criminal-trespass rules during a city council meeting where an ordinance aimed at expanding police authority was introduced.

The discussion centered on how the city defines and enforces trespass in vacant or occupied properties. Commissioner John Paul Young said printed copies of the relevant language make clear that “no person shall remain upon property without authorization,” and he argued that the police should be able to investigate and establish probable cause for trespass arrests. “Probable cause is not proof,” John Paul Young said, “it’s the reasonable belief that a crime is probably being committed or about to be.”

Why it matters: Neighborhood leaders and council members said enforcement gaps have left residents feeling vulnerable. Charlotte Russell, president of the Highland Neighborhood Association, told the council her group has gathered about 5,200 petition signatures asking for stricter enforcement of both trespass and blight laws.

Council staff and members framed the proposal as part of a larger property-standards effort. At the meeting, a staff member identified as Mister Dark described Ordinance 18 as the item that “involves providing police with additional opportunities, additional reasons to stop arrest, whatever must be done to folks who are trespassing and squatting in vacant buildings.” The ordinance was introduced for future consideration and no final vote occurred at the meeting.

Supporters urged clearer enforcement tools that would allow officers to determine whether a person on a property lacks authorization and, if so, to act on probable cause rather than waiting for court-level proof. Several speakers, including neighborhood leaders, said they want police to have discretion to investigate complaints quickly and remove unauthorized occupants from private property.

Council members also noted that the issue arose repeatedly in the Property Standards Committee meetings and that additional information and staff reports have been provided to the council in recent weeks. No formal action on Ordinance 18 was taken at the meeting; it was introduced and scheduled for later consideration.

The council indicated it will continue discussing property standards and trespass language at future sessions and follow up in committee work sessions to refine any proposed changes.